The image shows the extraordinary landscape of the Tanezrouft basin, one of the most desolate parts of the Sahara desert, in south-central Algeria. The region is known as 'land of terror' because of its lack of water and vegetation. As visible, this region is characterised by dark sandstone hills, steep canyon walls, salt flats (white), stone plateaus, sandstone outcrop patterns of concentric loops and sprawling seas of multi-storey sand dunes known as 'ergs'. Erg Mehedjibat, which appears as a yellow patch (upper right), is made up of a cluster of small star dunes that grow upward rather than laterally
Photograph: ALOS/ESA
The Guardian
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