The changing (not the Chang-ying) river

 

During this government shutdown, the NASA Earth Observatory is not providing an Image of the Day, and that's very unfortunate, because their images of the day are frequently both striking and informative.

Such is the case with this one that I'm recommending.

Braided River in Tibet Redraws Its Channels

Go to the article to see a somewhat incredible animation.  This is a still image acquired on February 8, 2025.

"The channels of braided rivers shift substantially from year to year due to high sediment discharge from nearby steep mountains, according to Zoltán Sylvester, a research professor at the University of Texas at Austin. Flooding events frequently remobilize the steady accumulation of loose, coarse sediment, preventing vegetation from becoming established on the sandbars."