The bright white rocks of Turkey's Pamukkale plateau - Earth.com

The bright white rocks of Turkey's Pamukkale plateau

Today’s Image of the Day from NASA Earth Observatory features the Pamukkale plateau on the northern margin of the Denizli Basin in Turkey. The region is known for thick deposits of travertine, a type of rock that forms when calcium carbonate precipitates from hot water.

According to NASA, the hot springs and thermal pools at Pamukkale, Turkey, have been a spiritual, cultural, and recreational destination for thousands of years. In the second century B.C., the ancient city of Hierapolis was built on the bright white terraces made of travertine, which averages 50 meters thick on the Pamukkale plateau. These deposits cover five square miles. 

The image, in which vegetation appears red, was captured on October 9, 2021 by the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) on NASA’s Terra satellite.

Image Credit: NASA Earth Observatory 

By Chrissy Sexton, Earth.com Staff Writer

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