English: The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board NASA’s Terra satellite acquired a stunning clear-sky, true-color image of the tip of South Africa on July 15, 2020.

The gorgeous greens along the coast mark a variety of vegetation, including the remarkable and unique Cape Floristic Region. This small region along the southwestern tip of Africa has the distinction of being among the most diverse on Earth, with more than about 9,000 species of vascular plants. About 69 percent of these are endemic, meaning they are found nowhere else. A large number of plants found in the fynbos and renosterveld ecoregions (part of the CFR) are very rare and in danger of becoming extinct.

The landscape changes dramatically as one moves inland, changing from moist to arid and from lowland to steep highlands. From the coast, the land first rises into the individual mountain ranges of the Cape Fold Belt, which are interrupted by wide valleys that run from east to west. The steep cliffs of the Great Escarpment rise dramatically, forming the edge of the large basin called the Eastern Cape Karoo.