Earth from Space - Image Description

STS034-088-022 Lake Okeechobee Basin, Florida, U.S.A. October 1989
Large cultivated sugarcane fields (rectangular patterns) are easily discriminated south and southeast of Lake Okeechobee. These flatlands in south-central Florida were part of Lake Okeechobee when it was much larger and produced an abundance of vegetation. As the shoreline receded to its present size, the decaying plants left a rich soil with a high humus content. Light, linear features extending south and southeast from the lake are part of a network of dikes and canals built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to transport water to the east coast. Part of the Arthur R. Marshall-Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge is visible (right edge).

This service is provided by the International Space Station program and the JSC Earth Science & Remote Sensing Unit, ARES Division, Exploration Integration Science Directorate.