View - Phoenix, AZ - Metropolitan Area - AZ

S73-35078 (July-Sept. 1973) --- A nearly vertical view of the Phoenix, Arizona metropolitan area is seen in this Skylab 3 (second manning) Earth Resources Experiments Package S190-B (five-inch Earth terrain camera) photograph taken from the Skylab space station in Earth orbit. Also in the picture are Scottsdale, Paradise Valley, Tempe, Mesa, Komatke, Salt River Indian Reservation and part of the Gila River Indian Reservation. Features which can be delineated from the photograph include: cultural patterns defined by commercial, industrial, agricultural and residential areas; transportation networks consisting of major corridors, primary, secondary and feeder streets; major urban developments in the area such as airports, Squaw Peak City Park, Turf Paradise Race Track and the State Fairgrounds. Phoenix is one of the 27 census cities of interest under study by the U.S. Geological Survey and is the center of the Arizona Regional Ecological Test Site. A large number of investigators will be using the Skylab data. This photo will be compared to earlier ones to document changes in the urban area with time. The landscape is well defined in terms of mountains, alluvial fans and river flood plains. Several different types of natural vegetation and irrigated crop lands can be mapped. Geological features are not well displayed but mining activities are readily identified. Photo credit: NASA