An astronaut’s snapshot reveals the colorful remnants of Iraq’s Razazah Lake, with algae-rich red and green areas indicative of its diverse salinity.
Surrounding the lake, the lush fields near Karbalā’ illustrate the region’s reliance on sophisticated irrigation methods.
Captivating Colors from Space
The red and green waterbodies in this photograph are remnants of Razazah Lake, an artificial lake located in central Iraq. Also known as Baḥr al-Milḥ, meaning “Sea of Salt” in Arabic, the lake is typically fed by overflow from Habbaniyah Lake, situated just beyond the top left corner of the image. This striking photo was captured by an astronaut aboard the International Space Station (ISS) on September 23, 2024.
Algae’s Palette: Natural Art
The vibrant colors of the lake are due to algae communities that thrive under varying conditions of water temperature and salinity. Green areas indicate lower salt concentrations, while red areas mark higher salinity levels. When there is no overflow from Habbaniyah Lake, as shown here, most of Razazah Lake’s bed becomes exposed. For comparison, a 2002 image (below) reveals the lake at much higher water levels.
Agriculture Amid Aridity
Various agricultural patterns surround the lake. Most prominent are intensively farmed fields east of Karbalā’. Small circular fields, the product of center-pivot irrigation, appear west of the city. The water comes from the nearby Euphrates River (not in the image) via a network of canals.
Astronaut photograph ISS072-E-244 was acquired on September 23, 2024, with a Nikon Z9 digital camera using a focal length of 200 millimeters. It is provided by the ISS Crew Earth Observations Facility and the Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit, Johnson Space Center. The image was taken by a member of the Expedition 72 crew. The image has been cropped and enhanced to improve contrast, and lens artifacts have been removed. The International Space Station Program supports the laboratory as part of the ISS National Lab to help astronauts take pictures of Earth that will be of the greatest value to scientists and the public, and to make those images freely available on the Internet.
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