SPACEPHOTOS

Rhine (Rhein) River, Germany Winter/Spring 1997 A section of the Rhine River Valley in southwest Germany is visible in the center of this color infrared image as the river drains northward (top to bottom). The main channel of the river is discernible as a series of loops (meander scars and oxbow lakes) south of the center of the picture and a winding, dark line north of the center of the picture. The Neckar River, a tributary of the Rhine, is visible (thin, dark line) as it enters the Rhine slightly below the center of the image. The pronounced dark red area (upper right) is part of a dense, forested landscape with a well-defined escarpment along its eastern edge. This escarpment also marks the western edge of the Rhine River floodplain. While the eastern boundary of the Rhine River floodplain is less well defined, a linear color change (from lighter colors to a lighter red) can be discerned extending vertically through part of the image. In general the darker reds show undeveloped, forested lands and the other colors represent a variety of agricultural activity that includes mixed crops and fruit orchards.