Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 1-5.
Cattle grazing in the páramo (alpine)
grassland-shrub vegetation in the Andes Mountains of
Venezuela. The páramo zone is almost constantly in the
clouds, rain or fog, as shown in the background. Photo
by J.S. Aber.
Figure 1-3.
Near-vertical view of the River Nile and
Mediterranean coast in the vicinity of Alexandria,
Egypt. The Nile supported one of the earliest
agricultural civilizations. Linhof large-format i lm
camera, March 1990, STS36-151-101; image adapted
from NASA Johnson Space Center.
Figure 1-6.
Barges on the River Rhine at Andernach,
Germany. Two loaded barges are moving upstream. The
control house and living quarters are located at the
stern of the barge. Photo by J.S. Aber.
Figure 1-4.
Fishing nets and boats on the shore of
Võrtsjärv, a large freshwater lake surrounded by marsh
in southern Estonia. Photo by J.S. Aber.
Wetlands are, for example, signii cant sinks for
carbon stored in their organic soil and sediment.
They are likewise important sources for carbon
dioxide (CO
2
) and methane (CH
4
), both green-
house gases, released from the stored organic
mass. Thus, wetlands are critical components of
Figure 1-7.
Traditional hand cutting of peat in Ireland.
After drying, the peat is used for home heating and
cooking. Photo by J.S. Aber.
