Coastal salt marshes like the wetlands of Adair Bay are sustained by tides. During low tides, water evaporates from exposed soils, producing salt flats; during high tides, nutrients are cleaned into the estuary, supporting halophytic plants development and the life cycle of marine organisms. The wetlands of Adair Bay are a Ramsar website and offer protected nesting premises for migratory birds, along with breeding grounds for endangered fish, such as the totoaba.
Astronaut photo ISS067-E-213849 was acquired on August 1, 2022, with a Nikon D5 digital cam utilizing a focal length of 1150 millimeters. It is supplied by the ISS Crew Earth Observations Facility and the Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit, Johnson Space. The International Space Station Program supports the lab as part of the ISS National Lab to assist astronauts take photos of Earth that will be of the greatest worth to scientists and the public, and to make those images easily offered on the Internet.
Wetlands of Adair Bay caught in astronaut photo from the International Space Station on August 1, 2022.
The estuary system marks the transition between the Great Altar Desert in northwestern Mexico and the Gulf of California.
The wetlands of Adair Bay (also called Bahia Adair) mark the transition in between the Great Altar Desert in northwestern Mexico and the Gulf of California. A single highway, paralleled by a railway, cuts throughout dry salt flats and sand on the northern reaches of the estuary. This picture, taken by an astronaut on the International Space Station (ISS), likewise highlights the sediment-rich waterways that allow the mixing of freshwater and saltwater important to the function of the estuary.
The green locations in the estuary system are salt-tolerant halophytic plant life, comprised mainly of mangrove trees and shrubs. Salty mudflats, indicated by the blend of white and gray hues, different the estuary from the surrounding desert sand. Pozos (Spanish for wells), a type of natural freshwater springs, lie throughout the salty mudflats and prevail in wetlands along the Gulf of California, though difficult to see from space.
The wetlands of Adair Bay (likewise understood as Bahia Adair) mark the transition between the Great Altar Desert in northwestern Mexico and the Gulf of California. Coastal salt marshes like the wetlands of Adair Bay are sustained by tides. The wetlands of Adair Bay are a Ramsar website and provide secured nesting grounds for migratory birds, as well as breeding premises for endangered fish, such as the totoaba.