Democratic Republic of the Congo Gallery

relief image of Africa by the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM)

Relief image of Africa by the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM). This release in 2000, includes data for all of the continent, plus the island of Madagascar and the Arabian Peninsula. The central latitudes of Africa is dominated by the Great Rift Valley, extending from Lake Nyasa to the Red Sea. To the west lies the Congo Basin. Most of the southern part of the continent rests on a concave plateau comprising the Kalahari basin. color-coding is directly related to topographic height, with brown and yellow at the lower elevations, rising through green, to white at the highest elevations. Blue areas on the map represent water within the mapped tiles, each of which includes shorelines or islands

Sunset over the Virunga Mountains of the Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda with the rural settlements dotting the landscape

A dramatic sunset with big cumulus storm clouds over the Virunga Mountains of the Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda with rural settlements dotting the lush green landscape. Rwanda or R_publique du Rwanda, is a sovereign state in central and east Africa and one of the smallest countries on the African mainland. Located a few degrees south of the Equator, Rwanda is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Rwanda is in the African Great Lakes region and its geography is dominated by mountains in the west and savanna to the east, with numerous lakes throughout the country. The climate is temperate to subtropical. The economy is based mostly on subsistence agriculture with coffee and tea being the major cash crops for export

© Mitchell Krog

Temporary dam construction on River Dangu

Local workers construct a temporary dam on the River Dangu, Belgian Congo (Zaire). The dam was being constructed in order to create a lake to allow the flying boat 'Corsair' to take off. The Imperial Airways flying boat had made an enforced landing in March 1939, and was at first thought to be unrepairable, and the order given for it to be dismantled. A company engineer from Alexandria thought otherwise, and repairs were made and a first dam constructed. The attempt to take off in June 1939 failed and further damage resulted. Following more repaiirs and the construction of a second dam, the second attempt to take off, in January 1940, was a success and the Corsair arrived in England on January 15th 1940. Date: January 1940

© Illustrated London News Ltd/Mary Evans