Floodwaters transformed the typically parched Australian interior as they flowed across the continent.
Floodwaters transformed the typically parched Australian interior as they flowed across the continent. In late March 2025, more than a year’s worth of rain fell in one week in parts of Queensland, setting off intense and destructive flooding in Channel Country. Swollen rivers submerged towns and pasturelands while draining toward Lake Eyre (also called Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre). But as waters receded, swathes of green emerged.
The reawakening of desert life along Cooper Creek is on display in these false-color images. On April 6 (left), floodwaters filled the river channel downstream of Windorah, a town that saw some of its highest river levels on record in the preceding days. By April 22 (right), water levels had subsided somewhat, allowing vegetation to spring up from the moist ground. The images were acquired with the OLI-2 (Operational Land Imager-2) on Landsat 9. The band combination (6-5-4) helps distinguish where water and vegetation are present.
Downstream of this area, floodwater isolated the small town of Innamincka. On April 10, the highest-ever river level was recorded in that location, according to news reports, and residents braced for weeks of impassable roadways into and out of town. The water level surpassed the previous record set in 1974, a historic year for outback flooding. Beyond Innamincka, floods forced Coongie Lakes National Park to close.
Read More: NASA Earth Observatory
(Photo Credit: Michala Garrison/NASA Earth Observatory)
