The capital city of the Syrian Arab Republic, Damascus, is highlighted in this photograph from the International Space Station. Damascus is one of the oldest cities in the Middle East, with evidence of human habitation extending back to 8,000–10,000 BC. During medieval times, the city was well known as a craft and trade center, specializing in the production of swords and lace. “Damascus steel” became a watchword for high-quality blades through the 19th century due to its superior properties and characteristic appearance.
In this photo, urban areas are readily recognizable as gray-white regions contrasting with surrounding brown to tan semi-arid landscape. The Barada River runs through Damascus, entering the metropolitan area at image top center. The Ghouta Oasis, fed by the Barada River, once encircled Damascus; but urban expansion has converted much of the oasis from agriculture to other land uses. A large region of agriculture extends to the southeast of Damascus, visible as extensive green fields.
Today, the city is the center of a metropolitan area with a population over 2.6 million (based on 2004 information from the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics). Current industries include textiles, food processing, and chemicals, with traditional artisan handcrafts still produced in the old core of Damascus. Most recently, the city has experienced unrest, military conflict, and loss of life stemming from the ongoing Syrian Civil War.
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Astronaut photograph ISS036-E-12047 was acquired on June 26, 2013, with a Nikon D2Xs digital camera using a 180 mm lens and is provided by the ISS Crew Earth Observations experiment and the Image Science & Analysis Laboratory, Johnson Space Center. The image was taken by the Expedition 36 crew. The image in this article has been cropped and enhanced to improve contrast. Lens artifacts have been removed. The International Space Station Program supports the laboratory as part of the ISS National Lab to help astronauts take pictures of Earth that will be of the greatest value to scientists and the public, and to make those images freely available on the Internet. Additional images taken by astronauts and cosmonauts can be viewed at the NASA/JSC Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth. Caption by William L. Stefanov, Jacobs/JETS at NASA-JSC.
