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The arid Sahara and the darker vegetation of the wetter semi-arid tropical woodland known as the Sahel

This east-looking image, taken on February 12, 2015 by astronauts aboard the International Space Station, shows landscapes of the arid Sahara (image left) and the darker vegetation of the wetter semi-arid tropical woodland known as the Sahel (image right). The dark green marshes of Lake Chad stand out in the foreground of this view. Even though it is more than 200 km long, Lake Chad is the small remnant of a vast lake that has repeatedly occupied most of the region in this view in the recent geological past. The image also captures an active dust plumeÑpartly obscured by the so-called Canada Arm of the Space Station. The dust rises from the white mud flats of the ancient lake bed (image top left). NASA/UPI

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