NASA MODIS Image of the Day: December 9, 2007 – Late Spring Floods in Australia
A late spring storm left the interior desert of Australia awash with water in early December 2007.
The MODIS flying on NASA’s Terra satellite captured the main image of southern Queensland and northern New South Wales on December 5, 2007.
If you move your mouse over the image, you will see a secondary image also from the Terra MODIS. This image was captured November 19, before the storms came through. The turquoise splashed across the desert in the main image is muddy water or water-moistened earth. In this type of image, created with infrared and visible light, water is usually black. In this case, the dirt in the water scatters light, giving the flooded waterways their vibrant blue color. According to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation News, the floods temporarily cut off towns and cities. Spring and summer flooding are common in this part of the Australian Outback.
