File:Scotland (MODIS 2016-03-21).jpg

English: On March 14, 2016, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard NASA�s Terra satellite flew over Scotland and captured a rare cloud-free view of the country.

Scotland occupies the northern portion of the island of Great Britain and is part of the United Kingdom. It is slightly smaller than Bavaria, encompassing 78,772 sq km (30,414 sq mi) to Bavaria�s 70,547 sq km (27,238 sq mi). The topography was formed primarily by glaciation during the Pleistocene area, and consists of rugged mountains of the Grampian Mountains juxtaposed to the gentle valley of the Central Lowlands. South of the lowlands the Southern Uplands are more gently hilly. The Northern Highlands occupy the far north of the country, with the islands of the Outer Hebrides, the Inner Hebrides and the Isle of Orkney ringing the coastline of the north.

According to BBC News, a heavy snow fell across most of the southwest of Scotland in early March. They further reported that this winter has been described as the wettest on record since 1910, with an average of 760 mm (30 in) of rain falling across the country in December, January, and February. Such heavy precipitation has left its mark on the landscape. In this image, can be seen lying atop the southwestern peaks of the Grampian Mountains while tan sediment � likely at least partially the result of rain-washed runoff - pours in into the Irish Sea from several rivers south of the city of Dumfries.