Earth and climate
Etosha Pan from space: Sentinel-2 false-color view of Namibia
ESA has published a Copernicus Sentinel-2 image from 5 April 2026 showing the Etosha Pan, a 4760 sq km salt pan in Etosha National Park, Namibia.
In brief
An image from the Copernicus Sentinel-2 satellite, published by ESA and acquired on 5 April 2026, shows the Etosha Pan, Namibia's largest salt pan, in Etosha National Park: about 130 km across and 4760 sq km in area, with vegetation highlighted in red by infrared and smaller basins such as the Natukanaoka Pan still full of water.
Key points
- The Copernicus Sentinel-2 image of Etosha National Park was acquired on 5 April 2026 at the start of the dry season, with average temperatures between 14°C and 30°C.
- The Etosha Pan stretches for about 130 km from east to west and covers 4760 sq km.
- The Ekuma River connects Lake Oponono, at about 1200 m of altitude, to the salt pan at 1030 m.
- Lake Oponono retains water from one wet season to the next and hosts flamingos and cattle.
- Sentinel-2's multispectral sensor detects light in 13 spectral bands, compared to the 3 of the human eye.
- The most intense red areas in the image correspond to the densest vegetation, such as the mopane woodlands inhabited by elephants, giraffes and leopards.
The European Space Agency (ESA) has published an image from the Copernicus Sentinel-2 program. The image was acquired on 5 April 2026. It shows Etosha National Park in northern Namibia. At the center of the scene stands out the Etosha Pan, the largest salt pan in the country, which appears as a bright white expanse. The image can be viewed on the dedicated ESA page, where it can be explored at full resolution. Etosha National Park is a wildlife reserve. Observing it from space makes it possible to track water, vegetation and habitats. The territory is difficult to monitor from the ground.
The Sentinel-2 satellite image
The scene shows the great salt expanse of Etosha National Park together with numerous smaller salt basins. It is a false-color image: vegetation appears in red. Water ranges from light blue to dark blue. It is light blue where it carries murky sediments, dark blue where it is clearer. The image captures the beginning of the dry season in the park. Typical average daily temperatures for this period range between 14°C and 30°C.
The Etosha Pan and the smaller basins
The main salt pan stretches for about 130 km from east to west and covers 4760 sq km. To the human eye it appears a brilliant white. Around the main expanse, to the northwest, smaller salt basins still holding water dot the landscape. The largest is the Natukanaoka Pan. These small “lakes” appear in shades of green and blue.
Near the center of the image flows the Ekuma River, which descends from Lake Oponono toward the salt pan. The lake sits at about 1200 m above sea level, the salt pan at 1030 m. The elevation difference is about 170 meters. Lake Oponono retains water from one wet season to the next, and for this reason it hosts flamingos and cattle even when the rest of the territory dries up.
Vegetation and wildlife
The vegetation surrounding the Etosha Pan includes grasslands, savannas and mopane woodlands. Mopane trees appear in a dark, intense red. They dominate the eastern and central areas of the park. They provide habitat for elephants, giraffes and leopards. The savannas of the western and southern areas, in turn, host wildebeest, lions and springbok.
On the salt pan itself, red patches are visible, a sign of some form of plant life. Few plants survive in the saline clay soil, but some blue-green algae and salt-tolerant grasses have adapted to this extreme environment.
How false-color imaging works
The vivid red is not an artistic effect, but the result of a technical choice. Sentinel-2 carries a multispectral sensor that detects light in 13 spectral bands, compared to the three (red, blue and green) of the human eye. The sensor thus also captures near-infrared and shortwave infrared. These allow false-color images to be built. Such images highlight specific features of the landscape. Healthy plants reflect more light in the near-infrared. For this reason, the areas of most intense red correspond to the zones with the densest vegetation. The color works as an indirect map of the vitality of the plant cover. It is useful for tracking the seasons, droughts and habitats of the reserve.
Sources: