Peru and Bolivia - MERIS - 26 April 2002

On the left in this full-resolution MERIS image is Peru, bordered by the Pacific Ocean on one side and Lake Titicaca, in the centre of the image, on the other. Observing the colours of the Lake Titicaca, which occupies more than 8300 square kilometres, several large plumes created by rivers discharging matter resulting from the erosion of the terrain can be seen. At the southeastern end of the lake is La Paz, Bolivia’s largest city.

At the bottom is the northern tip of Chile, with Bolivia on the right-hand side of the image.

Lake Poopo, highlighted in green and located 300 km southeast of La Paz, is one of many saline lakes on the Altiplano. This lake was dramatically polluted in February 2000 by an accidental 39 000-barrel oil spill. Its green colour in the image is due to its shallow waters.

Technical Information:
Instrument: Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS)
Date of Acquisition: 26 April 2002
Orbit number: 00365
Instrument features: Full resolution image (300-meter resolution)