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> China - Yellow River delta in 2009

China - Yellow River delta in 2009

author: Nasa/Novapix

reference: t-aschi-00011

Image Size 300 DPI: 25 * 16 cm

China’s Huang He (Yellow River) is the most sediment-filled river on Earth. In the lower reaches, where the current slows, the natural accumulation of sediment in the riverbed has caused the river to change course often in the past. Since the mid-nineteenth century, however, the lower reaches of the river and the delta have been extensively engineered to control flooding and to protect coastal development. This natural-color image from NASA's Landsat satellite shows the Yellow River Delta at the river mouth in 2009. In 1989, the river’s main channel emptied into the Bohai Sea in a southeast-bending arc. In 1996, Chinese engineers blocked the main channel and forced the river to veer northeast. By 1999, erosion and settling along the old channel caused the tip of the delta to retreat, while a new peninsula had formed to the north.

Keywords for this photo:

2009 - ASIA - CHINA - COMPARISON - DELTA - EARTH - EARTH FROM SPACE - HUANG HE - LANDSAT - RIVER - SATELLITE IMAGE - SEA - SEDIMENT - WATER - YELLOW RIVER - YELLOW SEA -