This satellite image shows drought conditions that have steadily dried up Lake Faguibine in the African country of Mali, as seen by Landsat. The lake formerly occupied the narrow dagger-shaped area at the top of the image.

Lake Faguibine's condition reflects the increasingly dry climate, despite fluctuating water levels over the past decades. The lake covered 230 square miles (590 square kilometers) in 1974 and was one of the largest lakes in West Africa, but has dried up to the point where no one can use it for fishing, agriculture or livestock herding. Vegetation shows up as red and water as blue, with bare ground in shades of beige and gray.

Mali stretches from the Sahara Desert in the north to the semiarid grassland of the Sahel in the south, and just 3.8 percent of its land can be used for growing crops. Increasing desertification continues to chip away at the country's already-meager resources, as documented by Landsat and other satellites over the years.

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— Michon Scott and SPACE.com Staff

Credit: NASA/USGS