The history of sea islands in the Altamaha River delta on the coast of Georgia is revealed in this image produced from data acquired by the Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR), developed and operated by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. The outlines of long-lost plantation rice fields, canals, dikes and other inlets are clearly defined. Salt marshes are shown in red, while dense cypress and live oak tree canopies are seen in yellow-greens. Agricultural development of the Altamaha delta began soon after the founding of the Georgia Colony in 1733. About 25 plantations
were located on the low-lying islands and shores by the 19th
century, taking advantage of the rich alluvial flow and annual
inundation of water required by some crops. The first major crop
was indigo; when demand for that faded, rice and cotton took its
place. A major storm in 1824 destroyed much of the town of
Darien (upper right) and put many of the islands under 20 feet of
water. The Civil War ended the plantation system, and many of
the island plantations disappeared under heavy brush and new
growth pine forests. Some were used as tree farms for paper and
pulp industries, while the Butler Island (center left) plantation
became a wildlife conservation site growing wild sea rice for
migrating ducks and other water fowl. Margaret Mitchell is
reputed to have used the former owner of the Butler Plantation as
a basis for the Rhett Butler character in her novel "Gone With
The Wind," taking the first name from Rhett's Island (lower
right).
These data were obtained during a 1994-95 campaign along the
Georgia coast. AIRSAR's ability to detect vegetation canopy
density, hydrological features and other topographic
characteristics is a useful tool in landscape archaeology.
AIRSAR flies aboard a NASA DC-8 based at NASA's Dryden Flight
Research Center, Edwards, Calif. The analysis on the data shown
was accomplished by Dr. Gary McKay, Department of Archaeology and
Geography, and Ian Morrison, Department of Archaeology, both of
the University of Edinburgh (Scotland). AIRSAR is part of NASA's
Earth Enterprise program. JPL is managed by the California
Institute of Technology, Pasadena.
More information about AIRSAR is available at
http://airsar.jpl.n…. Imaging radar information is at
http://southport.jp…. Dr. McKay's activities can be
accessed at
http://www.arcl.ed.… .
Description
The history of sea islands in the Altamaha River delta on the coast of Georgia is revealed in this image produced from data acquired by the Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR), developed and operated by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. The outlines of long-lost plantation rice fields, canals, dikes and other inlets are clearly defined. Salt marshes are shown in red, while dense cypress and live oak tree canopies are seen in yellow-greens. Agricultural development of the Altamaha delta began soon after the founding of the Georgia Colony in 1733. About 25 plantations
were located on the low-lying islands and shores by the 19th
century, taking advantage of the rich alluvial flow and annual
inundation of water required by some crops. The first major crop
was indigo; when demand for that faded, rice and cotton took its
place. A major storm in 1824 destroyed much of the town of
Darien (upper right) and put many of the islands under 20 feet of
water. The Civil War ended the plantation system, and many of
the island plantations disappeared under heavy brush and new
growth pine forests. Some were used as tree farms for paper and
pulp industries, while the Butler Island (center left) plantation
became a wildlife conservation site growing wild sea rice for
migrating ducks and other water fowl. Margaret Mitchell is
reputed to have used the former owner of the Butler Plantation as
a basis for the Rhett Butler character in her novel "Gone With
The Wind," taking the first name from Rhett's Island (lower
right).
These data were obtained during a 1994-95 campaign along the
Georgia coast. AIRSAR's ability to detect vegetation canopy
density, hydrological features and other topographic
characteristics is a useful tool in landscape archaeology.
AIRSAR flies aboard a NASA DC-8 based at NASA's Dryden Flight
Research Center, Edwards, Calif. The analysis on the data shown
was accomplished by Dr. Gary McKay, Department of Archaeology and
Geography, and Ian Morrison, Department of Archaeology, both of
the University of Edinburgh (Scotland). AIRSAR is part of NASA's
Earth Enterprise program. JPL is managed by the California
Institute of Technology, Pasadena.
More information about AIRSAR is available at
http://airsar.jpl.n…. Imaging radar information is at
http://southport.jp…. Dr. McKay's activities can be
accessed at
http://www.arcl.ed.… .
Description
