Photos from space published on the websites of NASA and other space agencies often attract the attention of those who doubt their authenticity - critics find traces of editing, retouching or color manipulation in the images. This has been the case since the birth of the “moon conspiracy,” and now photographs taken not only by Americans, but also by Europeans, Japanese, and Indians have come under suspicion. Together with the N+1 portal, we are looking into why space images are processed at all and whether, despite this, they can be considered authentic.
In order to correctly assess the quality of space images that we see on the Internet, it is necessary to take into account two important factors. One of them is related to the nature of interaction between agencies and the general public, the other is dictated by physical laws.
Public relations
Space images are one of the most effective means of popularizing the work of research missions in near and deep space. However, not all footage is immediately available to the media.
Images received from space can be divided into three groups: “raw”, scientific and public. Raw, or original, files from spacecraft are sometimes available to everyone, and sometimes not. For example, images taken by the Mars rovers Curiosity and Opportunity or Saturn's moon Cassini are released in near real time, so anyone can see them at the same time as scientists studying Mars or Saturn. Raw photographs of the Earth from the ISS are uploaded to a separate NASA server. Astronauts flood them with thousands, and no one has time to pre-process them. The only thing that is added to them on Earth is a geographic reference to make searching easier.
Usually, public footage that is attached to press releases from NASA and other space agencies is criticized for retouching, because they are the ones that catch the eye of Internet users in the first place. And if you want, you can find a lot of things there. And color manipulation:
Photo of the landing platform of the Spirit rover in visible light and capturing near-infrared light.
(c) NASA/JPL/Cornell
And overlaying several images:
Earthrise over Compton Crater on the Moon.
And copy-paste:
Fragment of Blue Marble 2001
(c) NASA/Robert Simmon/MODIS/USGS EROS
And even direct retouching, with erasing some image fragments:
Highlighted shotApollo 17 GPN-2000-001137.
(c) NASA
NASA’s motivation in the case of all these manipulations is so simple that not everyone is ready to believe it: it’s more beautiful.
But it’s true, the bottomless blackness of space looks more impressive when it’s not interfered with by debris on the lens and charged particles on the film. A color frame is indeed more attractive than a black and white one. A panorama from photographs is better than individual frames. It is important that in the case of NASA it is almost always possible to find the original footage and compare one with the other. For example, the original version (AS17-134-20384) and the “printable” version (GPN-2000-001137) of this image from Apollo 17, which is cited as almost the main evidence of retouching of lunar photographs:
Comparison of frames AS17-134-20384 and GPN-2000-001137
(c) NASA
Or find the rover’s “selfie stick,” which “disappeared” when creating its self-portrait:
Curiosity images from January 14, 2015, Sol 868
(c) NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Physics of Digital Photography
Typically, those who criticize space agencies for manipulating color, using filters, or publishing black-and-white photographs “in this digital age” fail to consider the physical processes involved in producing digital images. They believe that if a smartphone or camera immediately produces color frames, then a spacecraft should be even more capable of doing this, and they have no idea what complex operations are needed to immediately get a color image onto the screen.
Let us explain the theory of digital photography: the matrix of a digital camera is, in fact, a solar battery. There is light - there is current, no light - no current. Only the matrix is not a single battery, but many small batteries - pixels, from each of which the current output is separately read. Optics focuses light onto a photomatrix, and electronics reads the intensity of energy released by each pixel. From the data obtained, an image is constructed in shades of gray - from zero current in the dark to maximum in the light, that is, the output is black and white. To make it color, you need to apply color filters. It turns out, oddly enough, that color filters are present in every smartphone and in every digital camera from the nearest store! (For some, this information is trivial, but, according to the author’s experience, for many it will be news.) In the case of conventional photographic equipment, alternating red, green and blue filters are used, which are alternately applied to individual pixels of the matrix - this is the so-called Bayer filter .
The Bayer filter consists of half green pixels, and red and blue each occupy one quarter of the area.
(c) Wikimedia
We repeat here: navigation cameras produce black and white images because such files weigh less, and also because color is simply not needed there. Scientific cameras allow us to extract more information about space than the human eye can perceive, and therefore they use a wider range of color filters:
Matrix and filter drum of the OSIRIS instrument on Rosetta
(c) MPS
Using a filter for near-infrared light, which is invisible to the eye, instead of red, resulted in Mars appearing red in many of the images that made it into the media. Not all of the explanations about the infrared range were reprinted, which gave rise to a separate discussion, which we also discussed in the material “What color is Mars.”
However, the Curiosity rover has a Bayer filter, which allows it to shoot in colors familiar to our eyes, although a separate set of color filters is also included with the camera.
(c) NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
The use of individual filters is more convenient in terms of selecting the light ranges in which you want to look at the object. But if this object moves quickly, then its position changes in pictures in different ranges. In the Elektro-L footage, this was noticeable in the fast clouds, which managed to move in a matter of seconds while the satellite was changing the filter. On Mars, a similar thing happened when filming sunsets at the Spirit and Opportunity rover - they do not have a Bayer filter:
Sunset taken by Spirit on Sol 489. Overlay of images taken with 753,535 and 432 nanometer filters.
(c) NASA/JPL/Cornell
On Saturn, Cassini has similar difficulties:
Saturn's moons Titan (behind) and Rhea (front) in Cassini images
(c) NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
At the Lagrange point, DSCOVR faces the same situation:
Transit of the Moon across the Earth's disk in a DSCOVR image on July 16, 2015.
(c) NASA/NOAA
To get a beautiful photo from this shoot suitable for distribution in the media, you have to work in an image editor.
There is another physical factor that not everyone knows about - black and white photographs have higher resolution and clarity compared to color ones. These are so-called panchromatic images, which include all the light information entering the camera, without cutting off any parts of it with filters. Therefore, many “long-range” satellite cameras shoot only in panchrome, which for us means black and white footage. Such a LORRI camera is installed on New Horizons, and a NAC camera is installed on the LRO lunar satellite. Yes, in fact, all telescopes shoot in panchrome, unless special filters are used. (“NASA is hiding the true color of the Moon” is where it came from.)
A multispectral “color” camera, equipped with filters and having a much lower resolution, can be attached to a panchromatic one. At the same time, its color photographs can be superimposed on panchromatic ones, as a result of which we obtain high-resolution color photographs.
Pluto in panchromatic and multispectral images from New Horizons
(c) NASA/JHU APL/Southwest Research Institute
This method is often used when photographing the Earth. If you know about this, you can see in some frames a typical halo that leaves a blurry color frame:
Composite image of the Earth from the WorldView-2 satellite
(c)DigitalGlobe
It was through this overlay that the very impressive frame of the Earth above the Moon was created, which is given above as an example of overlaying different images:
(c) NASA/Goddard/Arizona State University
Additional processing
Often you have to resort to the tools of graphic editors when you need to clean up a frame before publishing. Ideas about the perfection of space technology are not always justified, which is why debris on space cameras is common. For example, the MAHLI camera on the Curiosity rover is simply crap, there’s no other way to put it:
Photo of Curiosity by the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) on Sol 1401
(c) NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
A speck in the STEREO-B solar telescope gave rise to a separate myth about an alien space station constantly flying above the north pole of the Sun:
(c) NASA/GSFC/JHU APL
Even in space, it is not uncommon for charged particles to leave their traces on the matrix in the form of individual dots or stripes. The longer the shutter speed, the more traces remain; “snow” appears on the frames, which does not look very presentable in the media, so they also try to clear it off (read: “photoshop” it) before publication:
(c) NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute
Therefore, we can say: yes, NASA photoshops images from space. ESA photoshops. Roscosmos photoshops. ISRO photoshops. JAXA photoshops... Only the Zambian National Space Agency does not photoshop. So if someone is not satisfied with NASA images, then you can always use their space images without any signs of processing.
Remember the movie “Men in Black”, where Agent Kay looked through an orbital camera at his beloved watering flowers in the courtyard? The opportunity to see what our Earth looks like from a satellite in real time attracts people from all over the world. Today we will tell you - and show you! - the best fruits of modern Earth observation technologies.
Attention! If you see a dark screen, it means the cameras are in the shadows. Screensaver or gray screen - no signal.
Usually we only get static satellite maps, frozen in time - the details are not updated for years, and an eternal summer day reigns outside. Isn't it interesting to see how beautiful the Earth is from a satellite online in winter or at night? In addition, the quality of images of some regions of Russia and the CIS leaves much to be desired. But now all this can be solved in one fell swoop - thanks to , Earth online from a satellite in real time is no longer science fiction. Right on this page you can join thousands of people who are now observing the planet.
At an altitude of 400 kilometers above the planet, where the station is permanently located, NASA installed one developed by private companies. The astronauts themselves or at the commands of the Mission Control Center direct the cameras from which data is transmitted. Thanks to manual control, we can see what the Earth looks like from a satellite online from all sides - its atmosphere, mountains, cities and oceans. And the mobility of the station allows you to view half of the globe in an hour.
How does the broadcast happen?
Thanks to the fact that the cameras are located at the International Station, even minor details are visible to us, which are commented on by scientists, astronauts and professional journalists. However, our Earth is visible online from a satellite in real time thanks to the work of a whole complex of people and machines - in addition to the already mentioned astronauts and the Control Center, the process involves satellite communication transmission technologies, solar power batteries and technical specialists involved in data translation and decoding. Accordingly, the broadcast has its own nuances - knowing them will help you see more and better understand what is happening on the screen.
Our observation point, the orbital station, moves at enormous speed - almost 28 thousand kilometers per hour, and circles the Earth in 90-92 minutes. Half of this time, 45 minutes, the station hangs on the night side. And although on approach the solar panels of the cameras can be powered by sunset light, in the depths the electricity disappears - therefore it is not always available from the satellite. At such moments, the broadcast screen turns gray; Just wait a little and you will be watching the sunrise with the astronauts.
In order to find the best time for observations, you will need our special satellite map of the Earth - it marks not only the time of passage of the space station, but also its exact position. This way you can find out when to see your city from space heights, or find a station in the sky with binoculars or a telescope!
We have already mentioned that astronauts and ground control can change the aiming of cameras - they perform not only an entertaining, but also a scientific function. At such moments, planet Earth is not accessible from a satellite in real time - a black or blue screensaver appears on the screen, or already captured moments are repeated. If there are no interruptions in satellite communications, the station is located on the day side of the planet, and the background suddenly changes, then the cameras are filming areas inaccessible to the public due to international treaties. Secret objects and forbidden territories are closed on static maps, skillfully hidden by photo editors or simply erased. All that remains is to wait for the moment when the situation in the world relaxes, and there will be no secrets from ordinary citizens.
Hidden Features
But don't be upset if the camera isn't working right now! When planet Earth cannot be shown online from satellite, astronauts and NASA find other entertainment for viewers. You will see life inside the International Space Station, astronauts in zero gravity, who talk about their work and what kind of satellite view of the Earth will be shown next. They even allow you to look into the impressively large Mission Control Center. The only negative is that even the speech of Russian cosmonauts is translated into English so that it can be understood by the American employees who manage the Center. It is currently not possible to turn off translation. Also, don’t be surprised by the silence - comments are not always appropriate, and there is no constant sound accompaniment yet.
For those who predict the route of cameras using the capabilities provided by a real-time satellite map of the Earth, we have advice - check the date and time settings on your computer. The server that updates the map uses the given International Station motion formula and the time zone of your IP address to predict the position of the orbital cameras. The online map judges what the Earth looks like from a satellite solely based on the device’s time. If your clock is slow or fast relative to the time zone, the station will move east or west accordingly. The use of proxy servers and anonymizers will also affect the results.
You are a participant in a scientific program
You've probably noticed that the quality of the picture of planet Earth from space and the live satellite broadcast often changes - the image is covered with squares or lags behind the audio track. In most cases, it is enough to check the speed of your Internet connection, disable other videos and programs for downloading files, or click on the HD button in the broadcast window. However, even if there are interruptions, it is worth remembering that the planet can only be seen alive thanks to a large-scale scientific experiment.
Yes, yes - the video on this page is transmitted for a reason. The cameras installed on the International Space Station are part of the High Definition Earth Viewing program, which is still being improved and developed. The cameras are installed by astronauts in conditions isolated from cold and dust, but they are exposed to harsh radiation from the outside. Scientists are experimenting with the difficulties of continuous data transmission in space, ensuring that a map of the Earth from a satellite in good quality exists not only motionless, but also living, dynamic. The results will help improve existing channels and create new ones - even in Mars orbit in the foreseeable future.
So let's stay in touch - new things appear in the world of space every day!
Our planet from space is an amazing sight, beautiful and inspiring. Let's hope that one day the day will come when more people will have the opportunity to see our home from space for themselves. In the meantime, enjoy these ten breathtaking views of Earth from NASA. These are the most famous photographs of the Earth from space.
1.Blue Marble
This stunning image, called “blue marble,” is the most detailed color image of the entire Earth taken before 2002. Using a collection of satellite photographs, scientists and visualizers stitched together months of observations of the earth's surface, oceans, sea ice and clouds into a true-color mosaic without any seams. This is one of the most common and famous photographs of the Earth.
2. Pale blue dot
This image of Earth, called the 'Pale Blue Dot', is part of the very first "portrait" of the solar system taken by the Voyajer 1 spacecraft. The spacecraft captured a total of 60 images for a mosaic of the solar system from a distance of more than 6 billion kilometers from Earth. From this distance, the Earth is a simple bright dot 0.12 pixels in size.
3. View of the Earth from the surface of the Moon
The following famous photo is an incredible image of Earth captured by Apollo 11 during the mission in July 1969. The first lunar mission launched on July 16, 1969 and ended safely with a return to Earth on July 24, 1969. The crew with 3 people on board consisted of Neil A. Armstrong, Michael Collins and Edwin Aldrin Jr. 
4. The first shot of the Earth and the Moon in one frame
This picture of the crescent-shaped Earth and Moon is the first of its kind ever captured by a spacecraft. Taken on September 18, 1977 by Voyager 1 from a distance of 11.66 million kilometers from Earth. Eastern Asia, the western Pacific Ocean and part of the Arctic are visible.
5. Earth divider
These two images were taken during the Apollo 11 mission. In them we see the Earth Divider - a rounded line with a diameter that is approximately equal to the diameter of the Earth. The divider passes through any point on the Earth's surface twice a day, once at sunrise and once at sunset, except in the polar regions, where this occurs much less frequently.
6. Earth and Moon. View from Mars
This is the first image of Earth ever taken from another planet that actually shows our home as a planetary disk.
7. Earth from the dark side of the moon
Apollo 16 captured this image with a Hasselblad camera. Much of the terrain seen here is never visible from Earth, as it is the "dark side" of the Moon. Apollo 16 launched on April 16, 1972 and landed on the moon on April 20. The mission was commanded by John Young.
8. Apollo 17 and the flag
One of the most famous photographs, which has caused much controversy regarding its origin. A widely accepted version is that there was no landing on the Moon, but that the photograph was taken in a production studio on Earth.
9. Earth on the lunar horizon
This photograph of Earth on the lunar horizon was taken during the Apollo 15 mission, which launched on July 26, 1971.
10. Blue Planet
Earth from space. The most striking feature of our planet is water. In both liquid and frozen form, it covers 75% of the Earth's surface.
Continuing, visit a selection of the most beautiful photos of the Earth from the Landsat satellite called “Earth as Art.”
The nature of our planet is diverse and unique. Traveling around our planet and photographing nature, you can create amazingly beautiful pictures. Photographs of the Earth from space, from an altitude of more than 700,000 m, are not similar to the photographs of nature that we are accustomed to. They are more reminiscent of paintings by abstract artists.
The US Geological Survey has published unique photographs of the Earth obtained from the Lanstad 7 space satellite. These photographs clearly show natural landscapes and human creations. They photograph the destruction caused by natural anomalies and the negative consequences of human activity. These images are actual satellite photographs of the Earth's surface, created by transferring visible and infrared data to print in colors visible to the human eye. Special range and color combinations were chosen to optimize these stunning shots.
Bogda Mountains in China
The Turpan Depression, located at the foot of the Bogda Mountains, consists of salt lakes and sand dunes. The Turpan depression is notable for the fact that it is the deepest in Central Asia and the third in the world after the Dead Sea basin and Lake Kinneret.
Southwestern coast of the Netherlands
The delta region in the southwest of the country, formed by the mouths of several rivers, is protected from flooding by a series of levees and dams. After unusually powerful tides devastated the area in the spring of 1953, a complex system of dikes, canals, barrages and bridges was built to hold back the North Sea.
Akpatok Island, Canadian Arctic Archipelago
The island is located at the northwestern entrance to Ungava Bay. The island is surrounded by steep cliffs ranging from 40 to 250 meters in height. The island is a reliable refuge for migratory and nesting birds. Numerous ice floes around the island attract walruses and whales, making Akpatok a traditional hunting ground for the indigenous Inuit people.
China
An alluvial fan formed between the Anlong and Kunlong mountain ranges on the southern border of the Taklamakan Desert in China. Alluvial cones are formed on land, at the foot of mountains, where water flows carrying debris material, which is deposited in the shape of a convex semi-cone, with its apex facing the place of removal.
Anti-Atlas Mountains, Morocco
The southwestern part of the Atlas Mountains, located in western North Africa. It is home to some of the richest yet untapped mineral deposits in the world.
Bolivia
This photo shows how the virgin Amazon rainforests are being brutally cut down. The surviving untouched forests are highlighted in red.
Brandberg mountain range, Namibia
Located in Damaraland, in the northwestern part of the Namib Desert, close to the coast and covering an area of approximately 650 square kilometers. Brandberg is the result of an ancient earthquake, as a result of which molten granite flowed through the resulting fault onto the surface of the earth. Unique communities of plants and animals inhabit its high-altitude environment, and prehistoric rock art adorns the steep cliffs.
Cabo San Antonio, Province of Buenos Aires
Cape San Antonio in Argentina, more than 500 kilometers long, wedges into the Atlantic Ocean.
Cancun
Famous for its beaches and hotels, Cancun is located on the Yucatan island. Located in the depths of the peninsula, tropical forests hide the ruins of Mayan buildings.
Volcano Colima, Mexico
A volcano in western Mexico, 80 km from the Pacific coast. Mexico's most active volcano, it has erupted more than 40 times since 1576. It includes two peaks: one is extinct, the other is active.
State of Campeche, Mexico
Named after the ancient Mayan province, Campeche includes most of the western Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. In the West it is washed by the Gulf of Mexico. More than 40% of the state is considered a protected natural area.
Coahuila, Mexico
This desert landscape is part of the Siedra Madre mountain system, which crosses the state of Coahuila from northwest to southeast.
Dasht-e Kavir, Iran
Dasht-e Kavir (Great Salt Desert), is the largest desert in Iran and one of the most lifeless deserts on Earth. The surface of the desert is covered with crusts of salt, which protects the meager moisture from complete evaporation.
Demini River, Brazil
A section of the swampy Demini River in northwestern Brazil, which flows into the Amazon.
Devastation Canyon, USA
The Green River, a tributary of the Colorado River, flows through three states: Wyoming, Colorado and Utah. The river flows along the high mountain plateau of Tavapust (above), then among gorges and canyons. Passing along the Canyon of Devastation (in the center), its banks become steep and sheer and reach 5-6 thousand pounds in height. Devastation Canyon is the second largest in the United States after the Grand Canyon.
Mongolia
A transition zone located between the Mongolian steppes in the north and the dry arid desert of Northern China in the south. In the local dialect Edrengiyn Nuruu.
Ganges Delta
At the point where it flows into the Bay of Bengal, the Ganges River forms a vast delta. The delta area is covered by swampy forests known as the Sunderbans, which is home to the Royal Bengal tiger.
Garden City, Kansas, USA
This space photo is like a fantastic mosaic panel. This is what Garden City, USA looks like from space.
Ghadames River, Libya
Dry bed of the Ghadames River on a plateau near the Tinhet Mountains in Libya.
Gosses Bluff Crater
About 130 million years ago, an asteroid or comet impacted Australia's Mission Plains and created a crater 14 km in diameter and 4 km deep. In the language of the locals, it is called Tnorala, that is, “Devil's rock of the fiery tread of the sun.”
Great Salt Desert, Iran
The shallow lakes and winding desert valleys look more like splashes of paint on a canvas than a desert landscape. The desert is located in an uninhabited area in Iran.
Sand dunes, Australia
There are no other deserts equal in size to it in Australia. Due to the arid climate, agricultural activities are impossible here. The variegation of color is caused by the complexity and diversity of the geological structure of the desert.
Sand dunes, Australia
The photo shows part of Australia's Great Sandy Desert. Sand dunes are indicated in the image with yellow horizontal lines. The brightest spot in the photo is the fire mark.
Baffin Sea
Baffin Bay, between Greenland and Baffin Island, is covered with ice most of the year.
Guinea-Bissau
A small country in West Africa. The country's extensive river system washes large amounts of silt into the ocean. This silt appears light blue in satellite photos. In red are tropical forests.
Harrat Al Birk, Saudi Arabia
The dark volcanic cones in the lava fields, formed from igneous solidified lava, along the Red Sea coastline are known as Harrat Al Birk. Such lava fields are often found on the Arabian Peninsula, their age ranges from 2 to 30 million years.
Himalayas
The mountain system, located between the Tibetan Plateau in the north and the Indo-Gangetic Plain in the south, stretches 2900 km in length and 350 km in width. Glaciers are located mainly around the largest mountain ranges and the highest peaks.
Location of the Iraqi Army
The area where Iraqi troops are stationed north of the city of Al-Basra. Previously there was a swampy area, which was subsequently drained and fenced. Today it is a military training area.
Jau National Park, Brazil
One of the largest national parks in Brazil. The Jau Park is located primarily in the Jau River basin, one of the small tributaries of the Rio Negro. The park's area covers the territories of several natural ecosystems of the Amazon: moist equatorial forests, never-flooded interfluve areas, periodically flooded high floodplains and low floodplains that are flooded for many months. A large variety of fauna is also associated with the so-called “black rivers”. These rivers are usually deeper, the water in them is clear and has a darkish tint due to the organic remains of decaying plants.
Jordan
The river network of Jordan is formed by wadis - temporary watercourses that are full only in winter during the rainy season. In summer they dry out or become very shallow.
Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia
The eastern part of the Kamchatka coast, covered with ice. On the right in the photo is the Bering Sea.
Von Karman Vortexes, Aleutian Islands
The picture shows circular vortices of clouds (the so-called von Kármán vortices) resulting from the separation of air mass flows over land masses, in this case occurring over the Aleutian Islands of North America.
Kilimanjaro, Tanzania
Mount Kilimanjaro is clearly visible from almost all points of the savannahs of Tanzania and Kenya - steep slopes rise to a flat top. The gigantic size of the mountain forms its own microclimate.
Lake Konari, Iran
The small town of Konari in the Zagros Mountains. In the lower left corner is the Caspian Sea.
Lake Amadeus, Australia
Endorheic salt dry Lake Amadeus in central Australia (top right). During the dry season, the surface of the lake turns into a surface sparkling with salt crystals. The yellow strokes in the photo are sun-scorched vegetation.
Lake Carnegie, Australia
Lake Carnegie fills with water during the rainy season. During dry periods it turns into a swamp.
Lake Disappointment, Australia
Salt Lake in Western Australia. It dries out during the dry months. It got its name thanks to the traveler Frank Hann. After exploring a large number of streams in the study area, he hoped to find a freshwater lake. But to his disappointment, this lake also turned out to be salty.
Lena River Delta, Russia
This is the largest river delta in the world. For approximately seven months of the year, the river delta is covered with ice. Not far from the Lena River basin is the largest nature reserve in Russia. The dark blue color on top is the Arctic Ocean.
Malaspina Glacier, Alaska, USA
Glacier named after the navigator and geographer Alessandro Malaspina. The blue color reflects the cold water of the melting glacier.
Mississippi River Delta, USA
The Mississippi is the longest river flowing in North America. Approximately every thousand years, the restless Mississippi River chooses new tributaries, having already furrowed about 320 km of the Gulf of Mexico coastline in the delta.
Volcano Etna, Italy
Etna is an active, highest volcano in Europe, located on the east coast of Sicily. The photograph captured the volcano's eruption in 2001. Columns of steam and smoke are visible escaping from the crater and lava flows on the slopes of the mountain.
Namib Desert, Namibia
Coastal winds create sand dunes 300 meters high, which are visible even from space.
Niger River, Africa
The river delta, which is 250 kilometers long and 325 kilometers wide, is the largest in Africa. The Niger River originates in the eastern Atlantic Ocean, in the highlands of Guinea. From there it turns northeast through Mali, passing through the southern Sahara Desert, then turning south and passing through the territory of Niger and Nigeria, emptying into the Gulf of Guinea.
Fjords of Norway
In the northern part of the west coast of Norway there are fjords that were formed during the last ice age. Norway has the largest concentration of fjords in the world. The entire coast of Norway is indented by fjords. Some specimens go to depths of hundreds of meters.
Ocean sands of the Bahamas
This satellite photo shows underwater sands off the coast of the Bahamas, formed by waves and ocean currents. The greenish color is algae.
Kalahari Desert, Namibia
The Kalahari is a vast kingdom of sand. Sand dunes are rapidly encroaching on once fertile and arable land. In the picture they are indicated by stripes. The pale pink color in the photo shows healthy vegetation.
Parana River Delta, South America
The Parana River flows in the southern part of the continent through Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina. The Paraná is the main waterway providing water supply and navigation in the region. The photograph clearly shows the contrast between the swamps (green) and the forests (reddish).
Volcano Pinacate, Mexico
In the north-west of the Mexican state of Sonora, on the territory of the desert of the same name, there is a zone of extinct activity of the Pinacate volcano. Peace and quiet reign here, occasionally disturbed by sudden eruptions of volcanic rocks. Crater cones extending deep into the earth are chaotically scattered throughout the desert.
Geological structure of Richat, Africa
The Richat structure is a geological formation in the western part of the Sahara Desert, called the “Eye of the Sahara” or “Eye of the Desert”. The diameter of the crater is 50 km. The origin of the structure is still controversial among scientists and it is believed that the sedimentary rocks of the Richat structure are the result of erosion of the earth's crust.
Shoemaker Crater, Australia
A crater formed as a result of a meteorite fall about 1700 million years ago. The diameter of the crater is about 30 km.
Sulaiman Mountains, Pakistan
The Sulaiman Mountains are located in the Pakistani province of Balochistan and in the Afghani province of Zabul. The length of the mountains is about 600 km.
Syrian desert
The Syrian Desert is a desert in the Middle East, between the Euphrates River valley and the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. It is located on the territory of the states of Syria, Jordan, and Iraq.
Oasis Terkezi, Chad
Sands of the Sahara Desert, near the Terkezi oasis in Chad.
Ugab River, Namibia
The Ugab River is vital to Namibia. During the dry season it dries out. During the heavy rainy season, the Ugab River valley becomes a refuge for elephants.
Vatnajokull Glacier, Iceland
Vatnajokull is the largest glacier not only in Iceland, but also in Europe. Most of the country's rivers originate here. Vatnajökull (translated from the Spanish as “lake glacier”) was named so because of the lakes located under the ice in its volcanically active central part.
Volga River Basin, Russia
The basin of the Volga River, which splits into more than 500 channels. One of the largest rivers in the world. Flows into the Caspian Sea.
Westfjords, Iceland
The Westfjords are a group of several peninsulas located in the northwest of Iceland.
Yukon River Delta
A river flowing in northwestern Canada and the United States and emptying into the Bering Sea. The complex, winding and tangled waterways of the river are like blood vessels. Currently it is a national reserve.
Our planet is beautiful and amazing. Perhaps, with the development of space tourism, the secret dream of many people to see the earth from space will come true. Today, you can admire the breathtaking, magnificent panoramas of the Earth in photographs.
We present a selection of ten of the most famous images of the globe from NASA.
"Blue marble"
A widely known and widely circulated image of our stunning planet until 2002. The birth of this photograph was the result of long and painstaking work. From a compilation of footage from months of research into the movement of oceans, clouds, and drifting ice, scientists have compiled a mosaic of amazing colors.
“Blue Marble” is recognized as a universal treasure and even now is considered the most detailed and detailed image of the globe. 
An image taken from a record distance (about 6 billion kilometers) using the Voyajer 1 space probe. This spacecraft managed to transmit to NASA about 60 frames from the very depths of the solar system, including the “Pale Blue Dot”, where the globe looks tiny (0.12 pixels) with a bluish speck of dust on a brown stripe.
The “Pale Blue Dot” was destined to become the very first “portrait” of the Earth against the endless backdrop of outer space. 
Another world-famous photo is a stunning view of the Earth taken by the American crew of Apollo 11 during the historic mission: the landing of earthlings on the Moon in 1969.
Then three astronauts, led by Neil Armstrong, successfully completed the task - they landed on the lunar surface and returned home safely, having managed to leave this legendary image for history. 
A photo unexpected for human perception: two luminous crescents on a completely black background of the universe. On the bluish crescent of the Earth you can see the contours of eastern Asia, the western Pacific Ocean and the white areas of the Arctic. The image was transmitted in September 1977 by the Voyager 1 interplanetary probe. In this photograph, our planet is captured at a distance of more than 11 million kilometers. 
The crew of Apollo 11 took two more famous photographs, in which the Earth's Terminator (from the Latin terminare - to stop) is visible with a rounded line - the light dividing line separating the illuminated (light) part of the celestial body from the unlit (dark) part, circling the planet twice per day - at sunset and sunrise. At the North and South Poles, this phenomenon is observed quite rarely. 
Thanks to this photograph, humanity was able to see what our home looks like from another planet. The globe from the surface of Mars appears as a planetary disk flickering above the horizon. 
This image was the first to capture the landscape of the far side of the Moon using Swedish Hasselblad equipment. This event occurred in April 1972, when the Apollo 16 crew descended to the dark side of the Earth's moon, with John Young as expedition commander. 
This photograph has a scandalous reputation: many experts believe that the picture was not taken on the Moon at all, but in a specially equipped studio that simulates the lunar surface. Many question the very fact of astronauts being on the Moon. 
