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In February 2012, Tropical Cyclone Giovanna made landfall in eastern Madagascar, packing winds of 125 knots (230 kilometers per hour) and heavy rains in excess of 250 millimeters (10 inches) along the coast. On February 20, Integrated Regional Information Networks reported that Giovanna had damaged or destroyed thousands of homes in Madagascar and killed at least 23 people.

The Advanced Land Imager (ALI) on NASA’s Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) satellite captured this natural-color image of the sediment-choked Onibe River on February 19, 2012. The river appears muddy brown throughout this landscape, and delivers a thick plume of sediment to the Indian Ocean.

The Onibe River arises in the highlands of Madagascar’s interior and empties into the ocean just north of the coastal town of Mahavelona (also known as Foulpointe). The river lies along the track Giovanna followed when it came ashore. Giovanna’s heavy rains spurred equally heavy runoff into the Onibe River.

In eastern Madagascar, rivers are typically short and fast-moving, thanks to the area’s stark relief. Madagascar’s highest mountain, for example, is 2,876 meters (9,436 feet) above sea level yet lies just 120 kilometers (75 miles) from the coast. The steep slopes lead to significant erosion, but even compared to the island’s usual runoff rates, the Onibe carried a heavy load of mud and debris in the wake of Giovanna. An ALI image of the same area on February 6 showed virtually no sediment plume at the mouth of the river.

Cyclones rank among the most frequent natural hazards for Madagascar. After coming ashore in mid-February, Tropical Cyclone Giovanna blew westward over the island, traveled southward through the Mozambique Channel, then curved back to the east, skirting Madagascar’s southern shore.

NASA Earth Observatory image created by Jesse Allen and Robert Simmon, using EO-1 ALI data provided courtesy of the NASA EO-1 team. Caption by Michon Scott.

The Earth Observatory's mission is to share with the public the images, stories, and discoveries about climate and the environment that emerge from NASA research, including its satellite missions, in-the-field research, and climate models.

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