EARTH Central Asia -- 18 Dec 2008 -- Cloudless skies allowed a clear view of Tibet in mid-December 2008.

EARTH Central Asia -- 18 Dec 2008 -- Cloudless skies allowed a clear view of Tibet in mid-December 2008. Snow caps some mountain peaks and ice partially covers some lakes in the region often called The Roof of the World. Tibet is home to more than 1,500 large and small lakes that cover 24,183 square kilometers (9,337 square miles). The area is also the source of many of Asia’s major rivers, including the Brahmaputra (Tsangpo), Indus, Ganges, Salween (Nu Jiang), Mekong (Lancang Jiang), Yangtze (Chang Jiang), and Yellow (Huang He) Rivers. In this image, sapphire lakes dot Tibet’s rugged surface. Many of the larger lakes, including Siling Tso and Nam Tsho are largely ice-free, evidenced by their uniform navy color. Some of the smaller lakes, however, appear in paler shades of blue, thanks to ice cover. The Himalaya rim the southern edge of the Tibetan Plateau, and the Nyainqêntanglha Shan arc toward Nam Tsho from the southeast. The mountain ranges sport snow-capped peaks intermingling with dark, vegetated slopes -- Picture by Lightroom Photos / NASA