What's in the photo? A multicolored 'mosaic' of small, tightly compacted farms
When was it taken? April 24, 2026
Taiwan is 14,000 square miles (36,000 square kilometers) — about the same size as Maryland — but has a population around four times as large, with approximately 23 million people living there, according to NASA's Earth Observatory. This places a heavy burden on the island's agricultural industry to provide enough food for everyone on the island, especially as large parts of the landmass are covered by mountains and rainforest.
The majority of the island's food is produced within Yunlin County, which is situated around halfway along the Chianan Plain, a lengthy strip of flat terrain that hugs Taiwan's west coast. Just under half of the county is visible in the satellite image, which spans roughly 15 miles (24 kilometers) across.
The restricted size of Taiwanese farms means that vastly different crops can be grown alongside one another. (Image credit: Marek Ślusarczyk (Tupungato) via Wikimedia)
The average size of a farm in Yunlin County is under 100,000 square feet (10,000 square m), which is around 90 times smaller than the average U.S. farm. As a result, the region looks like a giant patchwork of tens of thousands of irregular cuboids when viewed from above.
While Yunlin County's agricultural mosaic is fairly consistent across this image, two main areas stand out from the rest (see below).
Two specific areas of Yunlin County stand out when viewed from above. (Image credit: NASA/Landsat 9)
The second and perhaps most noticeable anomaly is a cluster of much larger, lightly colored farms near the town of Baozhong (bottom left of the photo). These are sugarcane fields, left over from when Japan controlled Taiwan between 1895 and 1945.
In addition to growing crops, these small farms are used to rear livestock, including chickens, cattle and "millions of pigs," according to the Earth Observatory.
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