NASA Photo Shows Shrinking Lake In The Southern Sahara Desert

A new photo taken by astronauts aboard the International Space Station shows the extent to which Lake Fitri, a terminal lake in the southern Sahara Desert in Chad, has diminished due to dry conditions. In the photo, which was taken in January, the muddy yellow-brown water is visible at the center of the basin, surrounded by a network of exposed mud, burnt vegetation, and sand dunes. The dry borders show that the lake was many times larger in years past, with the wind-shaped curves of ancient beaches now located several kilometers from the current shoreline. According to NASA, the lake, which formed as a terminus for rivers that never accumulated enough rainfall to reach the sea, is sensitive to the shifting equilibrium between inflow from rivers and evaporation. The numerous beach ridges show the different levels the lake has reached in response to the shifting climate system.