SPACEPHOTOS

Three colors dominate this near-vertical photograph of the mountainous area surrounding the urban area of Kamloops, a city with an estimated population of 70 000, in southern British Columbia, Canada. The green hues in the photograph show the heavily forested, rugged mountainous terrain. In marked contrast, the more highly reflective surfaces (tan areas) are areas where the vegetation cover has been removed. Within the green forests are many rectangular (checkerboard) patterns of lighter color where logging operations have clearcut the trees. The long, thin lines are power line rights-of-way where the vegetation has been removed. The dark blues are glacial lakes that are found in many of the valleys throughout this region. Kamloops is located at the confluence of the north and south branches of the Thompson River, which flows generally westward into the Fraser River. Kamloops is barely discernible at the eastern end of Kamloops Lake (west of center of the photograph) near the center of the nonforested area. In addition to being a resort center, the city is also a supply center for the mining and lumbering industries. A circular structure southwest of Kamloops appears to be an open pit, probably a copper mine.