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Amazon River from Above and Within
Jul 27, 2004 13: 17 EST
The European Space Agency sent us this image yesterday. It is taken by Envisat's Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS). A large part of Brazil's Amazon Basin is shown here. The area is a low-lying valley almost entirely covered by tropical rainforest, criss-crossed by rivers including the mighty Amazon itself. At first glimpse there appears to be no trace of mankind in this image, but a careful look reveals settlements and roads extending from top to bottom along the right hand side.
From a satellite’s perspective that is what you see. Down below, chugging up the Amazon, however, is a man with another perspective; Captain Phil who is taking medical supplies to local tribes and also searching for a young, missing traveler.
“We filmed a group of Yagua Indians near Pebas Peru several days ago. The Yaguas in this region were displaced in the early 1900's due to the violence cause by the Casa Arana rubber company. It is estimated that over 40,000 Huitoto, and Bora Indian died from the brutal treatment forced upon them by these rubber barons.
The violence ended in 1913 when Sir Roger Casement a British human right worker assigned to investigate these alleged atrocities against the Indians by this British financed rubber company, exposed the Casa Arana Company. England withdrew funding. The Company left the region of the Putumayo taking many of the Indians with them and withdrew into Peru. No charges were ever brought against the Casa Arana after the deaths of so many Indians. Roger Casement was later hung by the British Government as a traitor. He was a member of the IRB, Irish Republican Brotherhood, the forerunner to the IRA.”
The Amazon River is the world's largest in terms of volume of water reaching the sea. The river's network also forms the world's largest drainage system, with around 1100 river tributaries. These tributaries are often referred to as 'white' or 'black' rivers. White rivers (their actual colour is yellowish) often rise in the Andes, their tint resulting from heavy loads of mud and silt. Black rivers, conversely, rise in rocky basements from where little or no sediment is carried along.
A beautiful example of the confluence of the Basin's main white and black rivers, the Solimões and the Rio Negro converging on the Amazon River, can clearly be seen.
A peculiarity of the Amazon is the lack of settlements along the river's banks, compared to the usual large ports, transport networks and industrialised cities found along important waterways. Among the only three sizable cities settled on the Amazon banks is Manaus on the right of the image, just north of the confluence.
Rainforests worldwide are being destroyed at an alarming concern, a development of great concern because they are essential to life on a global scale. Unlike other forests, rainforests do not grow back when they are destroyed and their soils are not suitable for continued agricultural use.
All countries in the Amazon region are now looking into ways of exploiting its natural resources in a sustainable manner without destroying the rainforest any further. Environmentalists and Indians are working together to create markets for products such as nuts, fruits, oils and pigments.
Captain Phil, onboard his Amazon queen is an American war veteran on several missions. He is taking medicals to tribes and also searching for a young, missing traveler. Whilst he does this, he is getting ready for his dream voyage.
Captain Phil Gonzales made a 600 mile voyage on the Amazon from Leticia to Iquitos Peru in November last year. Now he is out again. He travels on his Amazon Queen, a wooden ship.
The voyages are in preparation for the main trip: A 4-5 month voyage on the Amazon covering 6,000 miles. The trip will take place as soon as he can get the money together for it.
The Captain is still looking for sponsors for his trip; onboard his own Amazon Queen, down deep in the rain forests of Amazon jungles, Captain Phillip Gonzales has been staying up every night writing until 2 a.m. He has been looking for sponsors, organizing a radio communications program with schools as well as organizing material for his new website. "It's draining me" he told us in one of his mails.
Another interesting part is the communication he is setting up. He transmits the most beautiful high res pictures using a transistor radio.
This is a truly cool trip. If you want to be a part of it, mail team@explorersweb.com and we'll set you up with the Captain.
Image of Amazon River from above courtesy of ESA. Image of Yagua Indians courtesy of Captain Phil.
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