Earth from Area: Northwest Sardinia, Italy

A part of the Italian island of Sardinia is featured on this picture captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission.

Zoom in to discover this picture at its full 10 m decision or click on on the circles to study extra.

With an space of about 24 090 sq km, Sardinia is the second-largest island within the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily. It’s located about 200 km west of the Italian peninsula, the same distance north of Tunisia, and is separated from the French island of Corsica by simply 12 km.

The realm pictured right here covers a piece of the province of Sassari within the northwestern a part of the island, with the Sardinian Sea to the west and the Gulf of Asinara to the north.

The city agglomeration of the town of Sassari might be seen as a brown and gray space close to the centre of the picture, about 10 km inland from the northern coast. Sassari lies at about 225 m above sea degree on a large plateau that slopes down in direction of the Gulf of Asinara. The town is surrounded by a inexperienced belt of agricultural fields and olive plantations.

The seaport serving Sassari is Porto Torres, mendacity on the coast alongside the Gulf of Asinara. The gulf is known as after Asinara Island, seen on the northwest tip of the gulf. As soon as house to one in all Italy’s top-security prisons, Asinara Island is now a protected marine and wildlife reserve.

Zooming in, it is attention-grabbing to notice how the waters inside the gulf seem calm in comparison with the tough waters of the open sea to the west, the place distinct wave patterns might be clearly recognized. The white color all alongside the western shoreline is attributable to the large waves crashing in opposition to the rocky cliffs.

Transferring south, two bays are seen on the backside of the picture: the smaller bay of Porto Conte and the bigger bay of Alghero. Right here, the town of Alghero extends alongside the coast, whereas the port of Fertilia lies  on the northern finish of the bay. The runways of the Alghero-Fertilia Airport might be noticed simply inland from Fertilia.

Within the space between Alghero, Sassari and Porto Torres lies the plain of Nurra. Overlaying a floor of about 700 sq km, Nurra is the second-largest plain on the island, dominated within the picture by agricultural fields, with a big part dedicated to vineyards.