This astronaut photograph of the Reliant Park area of Houston, Texas, is one of the highest spatial resolution images ever obtained from the International Space Station.
Published Nov 15, 2010
Taken on February 28, 2010, this astronaut photograph shows Houston at night. Different land uses appear at varying levels of brightness, with bright lights in Houston proper, and no lights in undeveloped areas.
Published Mar 22, 2010
Acquired July 31, 2010, this astronaut photograph features the NASA Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center.
Published Aug 16, 2010
Buenos Aires is one of the larger cities seen by orbiting crews. Twelve million people, almost one third of all Argentines, live in this city, often called the “Paris of the South”.
Published Mar 16, 2003
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
Galveston Island has alternately been a home to Native Americans, a base for Mexico’s rebellion against Spain, a pirate kingdom, a sea port, and even the capital of the Republic of Texas. In September 1900, the city was largely destroyed by a powerful hurricane. This storm damage, combined with construction of the Houston Ship Channel and discovery of oil in eastern Texas, shifted the center of trade northwest to Houston. This astronaut photograph shows some of the human impacts in Galveston that are easily observed from the vantage point of low-Earth orbit. The city of Galveston dominates the eastern half of Galveston Island, appearing as the gray-white region at center right. A large seawall along the Gulf of Mexico—shown here along the southern coastline of Galveston Island—protects most of the city. To the west of Galveston, coastal wetlands are largely submerged by regional subsidence—sinking of the land as a result of ground water withdrawal by the petrochemical industry of Houston and Texas City.
Published Nov 27, 2006
The radial pattern of highways echoes the ancient saying that “all roads lead to Rome.”
Published Jul 28, 2016
This nighttime photograph of Tokyo, Japan, was taken by International Space Station astronaut Dan Tani on February 5, 2008. The heart of the city is brightest, with ribbons of lights radiating outward from the center along streets and railways.
Published Apr 22, 2008
Divided by the Danube River, the city is actually a unification of three different older communities.
Published May 24, 2020
The city is a favorite subject for astronaut photography.
Published Mar 9, 2012
It was Texas hot when this view of the capital city of Austin was taken in late July by astronaut Ed Lu. Adding to the rising temperatures were heated debates in the Texas Capitol Building, where a special session had convened. Eleven senate Democrats thwarted a redistricting vote by disappearing from the state. Were Lu, and his Expedition 7 partner Yuri Malenchenko looking for the missing Democrats? We’ll never know. Astronauts have always enjoyed observing cities around the world. These images of Austin provide a 2003 baseline for monitoring its regional development and growth.
Published Aug 24, 2003
