Astronaut Photography

Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta
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Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta

In Colombia, high mountains show a rare sight in the tropics: snow and ice.

Published Apr 13, 2015

Image of the Day Land Life

Cairo at Night
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Cairo at Night

Home to one-fifth of Egypt’s population, it is the largest city in the Middle East and Africa’s second largest.

Published Apr 6, 2015

Image of the Day Land Human Presence

Typhoon Maysak from the Space Station
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Typhoon Maysak from the Space Station

To the astronauts, the eye of the storm seemed like a black hole from a sci-fi movie.

Published Apr 1, 2015

Atmosphere Severe Storms

Lake Chad and a Bodele Dust Plume
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Lake Chad and a Bodele Dust Plume

Desert meets woodland in Africa, punctuated by an ancient lake.

Published Mar 30, 2015

Image of the Day Atmosphere Land

Texas and the Gulf at Night
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Texas and the Gulf at Night

Cities, moonlight, and fossil-fuel industries frame the Gulf of Mexico with light.

Published Mar 23, 2015

Image of the Day Life Human Presence

A Sign of Surging on Bivachny Glacier
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A Sign of Surging on Bivachny Glacier

The looping medial moraines on Tajikistan’s Bivachny glacier offer a clue of periods when it surged rapidly forward.

Published Mar 17, 2015

Image of the Day Snow and Ice

San Diego
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San Diego

Astronauts flying on the International Space Station took this photograph of California’s southernmost coastal city.

Published Mar 16, 2015

Image of the Day Human Presence

Volcanoes, Vog, and Vortices
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Volcanoes, Vog, and Vortices

Vog haze is transported hundreds of kilometers downwind of the Big Island of Hawaii, forming subtle but distinct alternating swirls.

Published Mar 9, 2015

Image of the Day Atmosphere Water Volcanoes

Djibouti and the Southern Red Sea
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Djibouti and the Southern Red Sea

The nation is strategically positioned on one of the world's busiest shipping lanes, with access to the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean.

Published Mar 2, 2015

Image of the Day Land Water

New Zealand in Sunglint
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New Zealand in Sunglint

New Zealand is seldom photographed from orbit because it is one of the cloudier parts of planet, and because crew sleep periods often occur when the ISS passes over the area.

Published Feb 23, 2015

Image of the Day Land Water

Eastern Canada, Day and Night
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Eastern Canada, Day and Night

Astronauts aboard the International Space Station took these midwinter panoramas of the St. Lawrence River and surrounding cities.

Published Feb 16, 2015

Image of the Day Land Water Human Presence Snow and Ice

Memphis, Tennessee
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Memphis, Tennessee

Set on bluffs above the muddy, flood-prone Mississippi River, the city has long been a crossroads of water-borne and land transportation in the heartland of America.

Published Feb 9, 2015

Image of the Day Water Human Presence

India by Night and Day
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India by Night and Day

Two photos, taken 48 years apart, provide contrasting views of southern Asia.

Published Jan 26, 2015

Image of the Day Land Human Presence

The Electric Eye of Cyclone Bansi
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The Electric Eye of Cyclone Bansi

Lightning illuminated the center of the storm as the space station flew over at night.

Published Jan 25, 2015

Image of the Day Atmosphere

Gulf of Taranto
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Gulf of Taranto

Sediment and runoff plumes highlight the coast at the base of Italy’s boot.

Published Jan 19, 2015

Image of the Day Land Water

Cancún, Mexico
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Cancún, Mexico

A long lens was used by astronauts aboard the space station to take this photograph of the many natural and built features around this Mexican tourist mecca.

Published Jan 12, 2015

Image of the Day Life Water Human Presence

Plume from the Fraser River
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Plume from the Fraser River

British Columbia's longest river delivers sediment and nutrients to the Strait of Georgia.

Published Jan 7, 2015

Image of the Day Water Human Presence

Stable Fedchenko
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Stable Fedchenko

Precipitation increases and a layer of debris on the terminus have helped maintain the longest mid-latitude glacier.

Published Jan 5, 2015

Image of the Day Snow and Ice

Marzuq Sand Sea, Libya
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Marzuq Sand Sea, Libya

This sand sea is one of the most recognizable features for orbiting astronauts, partly because they see it often through cloudless Saharan skies.

Published Dec 29, 2014

Image of the Day Land

Rising in the East
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Rising in the East

The cradle of three major religions—and of much of modern civilization—was captured in this photograph by an astronaut on the International Space Station.

Published Dec 24, 2014

Image of the Day Land Human Presence

Chicago and Its Loop
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Chicago and Its Loop

A photograph from the space station shows some of the natural features that have governed the growth of the city.

Published Dec 22, 2014

Image of the Day Human Presence

Italy at Night
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Italy at Night

The easily recognized boot of Italy is spread across this panorama taken by astronauts aboard the International Space Station.

Published Dec 15, 2014

Image of the Day Land Human Presence

The Rocky Mountain Trench
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The Rocky Mountain Trench

As seen from the International Space Station, a long trench divides the Columbia Mountains and the Canadian Rockies.

Published Dec 13, 2014

Image of the Day Land

An Expanse of White in Bolivia
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An Expanse of White in Bolivia

The evaporation of several prehistoric lakes contributed to the formation of Salar de Uyuni, the world’s largest salt flat.

Published Dec 9, 2014

Image of the Day Land

Central Saudi Arabia: Riyadh and dunes
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Central Saudi Arabia: Riyadh and dunes

Astronauts aboard the International Space Station took this photograph when the desert center of Arabia was partly obscured by a dusty atmosphere.

Published Dec 8, 2014

Image of the Day Land Human Presence

Amazon River in Sunglint
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Amazon River in Sunglint

Astronauts use the Sun’s reflection point to reveal features that are otherwise difficult or impossible to see.

Published Dec 1, 2014

Image of the Day Water

Anvil on the Horizon
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Anvil on the Horizon

As moisture-filled thunderhead clouds expand upward through the atmosphere, they can hit a more stable layer and flatten into an anvil shape.

Published Nov 24, 2014

Image of the Day Atmosphere

Florida at Night
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Florida at Night

The peninsula is highly recognizable even at night, especially when looking north, as our map-trained brains expect.

Published Nov 17, 2014

Image of the Day Land Water Human Presence

Smog or Fog? Actually, a Bit of Both
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Smog or Fog? Actually, a Bit of Both

A photograph by an astronaut leads us to a teachable moment about what’s in our air.

Published Nov 11, 2014

Image of the Day Atmosphere Human Presence

El Paso and Ciudad Juárez
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El Paso and Ciudad Juárez

This astronaut photograph shows these sister cities on the Rio Grande, the second largest metropolitan area on the Mexico–U.S. border.

Published Nov 10, 2014

Image of the Day Land Human Presence