Palm Island - Essential Aspects You Must Know

There are artificial islands off the coast of Dubai, one of the various emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates. These islands were the biggest man-made islands in the world when this image was captured on September 18, 2006 by NASA's Terra satellite using the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER). In the fall of 2006, all of the islands were still being built in some capacity.

  • The four man-made islands in this picture are Palm Jebel Ali, Palm Jumeirah, The World, and Palm Deira, in that order.
  • The site for The World, which when finished would look like a map of the world, is located between Palm Jumeirah and the location for Palm Deira.
  • All of these man-made islands are made of sand, which makes them stand out against the murky ocean.
  • Shallower water areas, such those near The World's construction site, appear as dark blue-green.
  • Dubai itself is primarily desert, with sand the same color as man-made islands.

Sand from the Persian Gulf's bottom is dug up and used to build the Palm Islands by being sprayed over the proper places to form the necessary shapes. The sand-spraying ships use GPS satellite readings to find their targets, therefore satellite technology has been used in the creation of artificial islands. Dutch scientists also contributed to some of the island construction due to their extensive experience with land reclamation in their own country.