Bombetoka Bay, Madagascar

Hunting for a Where on Google Earth location a while ago I ran across this wonderful tidally-influenced delta on the northwest coast of Madagascar. It is the mouth of the Betsiboka River and just north of the river mouth is the second largest port in Madagascar.

What struck me about the delta was not just the nice tug-of-war between riverine and tidal processes in shaping the islands, but the dramatic red color of the water in the Google Earth image (and others as well). This red color is symptomatic of the massive erosion resulting from rampant deforestation of the island.

The four photos are from Flash Earth, Google Earth, and the Gateway to Astronaut Photography, NASA Earth Observatory (ASTER satellite)

Flash earth permanent link: http://www.flashearth.com/?lat=-15.883853&lon=46.436067&z=10.8&r=0&src=msa

Astronaut Photograph: http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/scripts/sseop/photo.pl?mission=ISS005&roll=E&frame=9418

Earth Observatory ASTER image: http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=5245