Images & Animations
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Credit
Images courtesy USGS EROS Data Center and the Landsat 7 Science Team
<font size="-2" face="helvetica, arial, sans">full-resolution images
June 14, 2000 (2.7 MB JPEG)
June 17, 2001 (2.6 MB JPEG)</font>
The Klamath Project dates back to 1903, when the Reclamation Service (now the Bureau of Reclamation, a branch of the U.S. Department of the Interior) investigated the possibility of converting rangeland, wetlands, and natural lakes into irrigated farmland. Construction began in 1906, the first water deliveries were made in 1907, and the project was completed in 1924. The Bureau of Reclamation supplies water to the farmers at the cost of delivery, without charging for the water. Fodder, barley, oats, potatoes, and wheat are the principal crops on the 225,000 acres of irrigated land. In addition, the irrigation dams control floodwaters, and the Link River Dam supplies hydroelectric power.
The images above show the northeast portion of the Klamath Basin in 2000 (top) and 2001 (lower). These true-color images were acquired by the Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus sensor aboard the Landsat 7 satellite, launched by NASA and operated by the U.S. Geological Survey. Upper Klamath Lake, with its endangered sucker fish, is at the upper left, with the town of Klamath falls immediately below it. Bonanza is to the right of Klamath Falls. Tule Lake, which has been partially converted to farmland, is at the lower right and is surrounded by the Tule Lake National Wildlife Refuge. To the left of Tule Lake are the remains of Lower Klamath Lake and the marshes of the Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge.
Farms left dry by the water shortage appear brown in this year’s image. Most of the farms without irrigation water are between Upper Klamath Lake and Tule Lake. The land immediately surrounding Tule Lake did receive irrigation water this year, and as a result is greener than the fields to the north. Some farms rely on wells and not Klamath Project water, and many of these remained green, as well.
Metadata
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Sensor
Landsat 7/ETM+ -
Visualization Date
2001-09-08
