Cities at Night
Explanation:
Looking toward the south from an altitude of 400 kilometers,
this stunning snapshot
from orbit finds bright lights of Tokyo and
cities across
central and southern Japan, planet Earth shining upward
through broken clouds.
The spacefaring perspective
was captured last July
by astronaut Scott Kelly during his stay on board the
International Space Station.
Thin stripes of airglow follow the curve of the planet's
dark limb, while beyond lie stars of the
constellation Centaurus and the southern sky.
Their solar panels extended, a docked Soyuz (bottom) and Progress spacecraft
are posed in the foreground.
Kelly returned to planet Earth this week after his
one-year mission in space.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
