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DOWN TO EARTH: Australia's inland lake, seen from space
2 Jul 2009
Australia's Lake Eyre drainage basin sprawls across about 1.2 million square kilometres, stretching from Northern Territory to South Australia. Rain, when it falls, drains inward through the Simpson Desert basin into Lake Eyre, which has no outlet. Lake Eyre is the fifth largest "terminal lake" in the world.
But Lake Eyre does not always hold water. In fact, the lake is dry except in the wake of a rare, steady rainy season. In 2009, intense rains fell over northern Australia. A total of 17 million megalitres of water flowed through the "channel country", soaking into the soil and sustaining grasses.
By March, water had begun to reach Lake Eyre. By June 10, when the Landsat satellite captured the image above, the flow of water had slowed—Lake Eyre was as full as it was going to get in 2009.
Shallow water covers most of the lakebed. The water is colourful, tinted green and blue by sediment and algae. The south-western lobe of the lake is darkest in colour. According to the Lake Eyre Yacht Club, it is also the deepest portion of the lake at 1.4 metres. When it fills, Lake Eyre and the wetlands in the basin provide an important habitat for birds and fish. Birds flocked to the lake when it began to fill in 2009.
Adapted from information issued by NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using Landsat data provided by the United States Geological Survey. Caption adapted from information issued by Holli Riebeek.
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