This composite image was developed by integrating 3 separate images from the near-infrared channel from the Copernicus Sentinel-2 objective over a duration of 9 months.
The first image, caught on November 27, 2020, is assigned to the red channel and represents the beginning of the wet summertime season; the second from March 12, 2021, represents green, and was captured towards the end of the wet season; and the 3rd from August 19, 2021, covers the blue part of the spectrum, recorded during the short, dry season.
All other colors visible in the image are different mixes of red, green, and blue, and differ according to the phase of plants growth. An unique pattern emerges due to topographical distinctions in this mountainous landscape, such as altitude and slope, which affect regional water accessibility.
Credit: Contains customized Copernicus Sentinel information (2020-21), processed by ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
The Copernicus Sentinel-2 objective takes us over northwest Lesotho– a little, land-locked nation surrounded totally by South Africa.
Understood for its tall mountains and narrow valleys, Lesotho is the only country on the planet that lies completely above 1000 m in elevation. Lesotho has an area of just 30,000 sq km, around the exact same size as Belgium, and has a population of around 2 million.
Around 80% of the countrys population resides in backwoods and more than 3 quarters of these individuals are taken part in agriculture– mostly conventional, rainfed cereal production and extensive animal grazing. The nations farming system faces a growing number of issues, including a little part of the land considered arable, in addition to other climate-related vulnerabilities such as drought, floods, and severe temperature levels taking place more often.
Maseru, the capital and largest metropolitan center of Lesotho, lies directly on the Lesotho– South Africa border. The city is located on the left bank of the Caledon River, likewise understood as the Mohokare River, visible in black.
The Copernicus Sentinel-2 objective is created to supply images that can be used to compare various crop types along with data on numerous plant indices, such as leaf area, leaf chlorophyll, and leaf water. The objectives revisit time of simply five days, together with the missions variety of spectral bands, mean that modifications in plant health and development can be more easily kept an eye on.
