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Where on Earth...?
MISR Mystery Image Quiz #6

 Image representing the MISR project.
Where is this mystery lagoon?
Other formats available at JPL.

Here's another chance to play geographical detective! This Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR) image covers an area of about 298 kilometers x 358 kilometers, and was captured by the instrument's vertical-viewing (nadir) camera on December 27, 2001. Use any reference materials you like and answer the following five questions:

  1. The large lagoon in the image is named for a particular type of bird. Name the bird.

  2. Note the sediment plume emanating from the southern end of the lagoon. Sailors in the 16th century imagined this outlet to be the mouth of a large river. What did they call the river?

  3. A series of wave-like points and curls form "cusps" on the inner shores of the lagoon. Which ONE of the following is most responsible for the formation of these cusps?

    1. Violent storm impacts on erosion and accretion
    2. Wind and tide-driven sediment transport and circulation
    3. Tectonic folding associated with nearby mountain ridges
    4. Bathymetric effects of dredging operations

  4. True or false: Changes in regional precipitation associated with large scale atmospheric circulation patterns have no effect on the salinity of the lagoon's water.

  5. Which one of these is NOT distributed within the area covered by this image?

    1. Ruppia maritima
    2. Chelonia mydas
    3. Tapirus bairdii
    4. Microcystis aeruginosa

Mystery Solved!

Image credit: NASA/GSFC/LaRC/JPL, MISR Team.

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