Photograph by Adrianafranco Fran
"This image has a wonderful texture that is almost surreal. At first glance, it's hard to even distinguish what the subject of this photo is—is it snow? Some kind of microscopic leaf or moss? It's just downright stunning as a desert aerial."—Janna Dotschkal, assistant photo editor
"You wake up to cereal made from midwestern corn. You slip on cotton clothes, get into a vehicle fueled partly by ethanol and dine later on chicken and rice—all made possible by crops from the Mississippi River Basin, a vast area that stretches from Montana to New York and drains all or parts of 31 states.
The part of the basin east of the Mississippi River largely relies on rain to grow crops; farmers on the west side irrigate much, much more. All told, it's among the most productive farming regions in the world."
The Rakaia river, shown in March 2011, runs through the Canterbury Plains on New Zealand's South Island for about 150km to the Pacific.
This image has won an online vote for DigitalGlobe's best satellite image of 2011.
Dramatic river bend surrounds a natural red-rocked pedestal
"Just a short hike from Route 89 near Page, Arizona is one of America's great natural wonders. In a spectacularly dramatic landscape, the area provides great hiking among the red rocks looking over the river.
Although Horseshoe Bend is a natural formation, it is almost perfect enough to cast some doubt. Swirling around a 1,000-foot-high pedestal, the Colorado River bends in a smooth circle around a massive, craggy rock formation before flowing back through the Southwest"
