Explore the Earth at night in this interactive image from NASA. Go full screen to take advantage of changing directions, etc…

The image is a composite assembled from datat acquired by the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership satellite over nine days in April 2012 and thirteen days in October 2012. 

nprfreshair:

From Krulwich Wonders, An NPR Sciencey Blog:

In this video, we are flying over the Earth, looking down and seeing what astronauts see when it’s nighttime, when lightning storms flash like June bugs, when cities look like galaxies, when you can see where people are. It’s quietly astonishing.

This montage of space footage was assembled and narrated by NASA scientist Justin Wilkinson.

You can check out more Krulwich Wonders here.

(via ISS Star Trails - a set on Flickr)

Some really beautiful long-exposure photographs taken by astronaut Don Petit from aboard the International Space Station. Click the link to see more. 

smithsonianmag:

Never-Before-Seen Photos From the Early Days of Space Exploration

The Gemini astronauts also took some of the most memorable photos in NASA history. You’d think we would have seen them all by now. But with Nasa’s help and funding, a team of researchers at Arizona State University led by lunar scientist Mark Robinson has retrieved from the archives dozens of outtakes that never made it into wide circulation.

Photos: NASA

Ed note: Check out our friends at Air & Space for more stunning photos from the Gemini mission.

(via bbook)

smithsonianmag:

Inspirational Footage from Space

The footage in this video is derived from image sequences from NASA’s Cassini and Voyager missions.

Ed note: The twin Voyager probes are now on the brink of interstellar space. The man who helped compile the time capsules they carry reflects on our deepest foray into outer space.

(via xgray)

Earth | Time Lapse View from Space, Fly Over | NASA, ISS (by Michael König)

Wow, I hope you can take a few minutes to enjoy these unique views of our home from the International Space Station. The video is a time-lapse compilation of photos taken from August to October, 2011.