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Tomorrow, August 25, 2016, the National Park Service turns 100! To mark this special birthday we’re sharing this impressive off-nadir image of the Grand Canyon captured by our WorldView-3 satellite on September 19, 2015. Can you spot Grand Canyon Village (aka South Rim station)? Your browser does not support iframe, click here for full map

Here’s a few interesting facts you may not know about national parks:

  1. The Grand Canyon has nearly 40 identified rock layers in the walls.
  2. Six times the size of Yellowstone, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park is America’s largest national park. It’s home to four mountain ranges and three climate zones.
  3. Badwater Basin in Death Valley National Park is the lowest point in North America and also the hottest and driest place in North America.
  4. Denali in Denali National Park is the highest point in North America. There’s also only one road in the whole park.
  5. The smallest national park and the only one located in an urban area is Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas.
  6. Crater Lake in Crater Lake National Park is home to America’s deepest lake. The lake is 1,943 feet deep (592 meters).
  7. Everglades National Park has the largest mangrove ecosystem in the Western Hemisphere and is home to 14 endangered and nine threatened species.
  8. Theodore Roosevelt National Park honors the man and former president who created the National Park Service.
  9. You can find the largest sand dune in North America at Great Sand Dunes National Park. Star dune is 750 feet tall (229 meters).
Be sure to follow us on Instagram over the next two weeks as we share images of some of these breathtaking national parks as captured from outer space.
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