Water: Exploring the Blue Planet

by Markus Eisl, Gerald Mansberger, Paul Schreilechner

Water is in crisis. We are in crisis. All life depends on water and we are running out of it, but where exactly is the water and where is it going? This book provides new insight into the world of water and contributes to a wider understanding of the current predicament. Exploring the Blue Planet is essentially a map of water. It features astonishingly detailed photographs that reveal the watery health of the Blue Planet. Readers are taken aboard satellites circling the Earth from where the most technologically advanced cameras and remote sensors capture what lies below. The photographs are accompanied by descriptions and organized in thematic chapters. Water reveals the damage wrought by nature -- cyclones, volcanoes, floods -- and the destruction wrought by humans -- vanishing reservoirs, receding glaciers, melting ice sheets. And what of our attempts to control water? How do the hydropower dams, shore stabilization structures and desert oases we build affect the movement and availability of water? How does our insatiable thirst and recklessness cause poisonous salination, desertification and the disappearance of seas, lakes, reservoirs, islands and shorelines? In the text and captions, the expert authors explain current knowledge of life's essential element, from the biodiversity of the oceans to the inestimable value of drinking water. Readers can follow the tracings of Earth's most important resource as it travels around the globe, and acquire a new and deeper understanding of the water crisis. They will also marvel at the utter beauty of Earth. The photographs in Water are produced by the highest caliber satellite and remote-sensor imagery that current technology allows. The observation-based data covers 1.5 billion square miles (4 billion sq. km) and comprises a real-time map of the world's water. These maps are used to support decision-makers in areas such as public safety, environmental monitoring, oil and gas exploration, and infrastructure management. At the exceptional price of just $49.95, this important book is an essential purchase for academic collections (especially earth sciences, hydrology, environment, ecology, sustainability, economic development, cartography and remote sensing), for public libraries seeking an up-to-date reference, and for interested general readers.

Genres: Science

312 pages, Hardcover

Published September 27, 2016

Reviews

[Jenni DaVinCat · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is quite a great deal larger than I anticipated, but it will make an excellent coffee table book. There are tons of full page and full color satellite images of different areas of the world dealing with water. Rivers, lakes, oceans, bays, islands, harbors, you name it, and it's in this book if it has to do with water. There are short paragraphs to go along with each picture giving a little bit of useful information.

Although, I am disappointed that there are no pictures of Lake Michigan, and only one photo of the Great Lakes area, there are a lot of other water areas in the world than just the Great Lakes.

This is an excellent addition to any coffee table type book. The pictures are incredible and it's a lot of fun to look at the different water areas that the world has to offer.