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June 6, 2025 - Registan Desert
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The Registan Desert is the largest desert in Afghanistan, spanning an area of more than 30,000 square kilometers (11,500 square miles) in the southern part of the country. It is a land of extremes, with temperatures soaring to brutal highs in the summer, plunging to icy cold in the winter, and exceptionally arid year-round. The desert contains a wide range of desert biotypes, from free moving sand to gravel plains. It is well known for spectacular crescent-shaped sand dunes, which migrate across the desert due to the effect of near-constantly whipping winds.
The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite acquired this true-color image of the Registan Desert on June 4, 2025. The orange sands mark the bulk of the desert and rise to spectacular sand dunes in the east, which rise so tall they are easily seen from space. The Registan is bounded by the Helmand River in the west, which is lined by green vegetation, and the rugged Spin Ghar Range in the south and east. The border of Afghanistan and Pakistan courses along the heights of these mountains.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Terra
Date Acquired: 6/4/2025
Resolutions:
1km (136.3 KB), 500m (373.7 KB), 250m (704.3 KB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
The Registan Desert is the largest desert in Afghanistan, spanning an area of more than 30,000 square kilometers (11,500 square miles) in the southern part of the country. It is a land of extremes, with temperatures soaring to brutal highs in the summer, plunging to icy cold in the winter, and exceptionally arid year-round. The desert contains a wide range of desert biotypes, from free moving sand to gravel plains. It is well known for spectacular crescent-shaped sand dunes, which migrate across the desert due to the effect of near-constantly whipping winds.
The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite acquired this true-color image of the Registan Desert on June 4, 2025. The orange sands mark the bulk of the desert and rise to spectacular sand dunes in the east, which rise so tall they are easily seen from space. The Registan is bounded by the Helmand River in the west, which is lined by green vegetation, and the rugged Spin Ghar Range in the south and east. The border of Afghanistan and Pakistan courses along the heights of these mountains.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Terra
Date Acquired: 6/4/2025
Resolutions:
1km (136.3 KB), 500m (373.7 KB), 250m (704.3 KB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
