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Stunning Photos of Earth from the International Space Station

Astronaut Tim Peake captures images of volcanoes, cities, glaciers and aurora from 249 miles up

Credit:

European Space Agency


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British astronaut Tim Peake spent 186 days on the International Space Station, from December 15, 2015 to June 16, 2016. A novice photographer at the start, Peake experimented with different techniques and lenses, eventually becoming a pro at capturing earth images from space.  The space station orbits the earth 16 times in 24 hours, affording a view of more than 1,000 kilometers on earth in every direction at any given time. Below are a selection of some of the best photos he captured, part of his book Hello, Is This Planet Earth?

Andrea Gawrylewski is chief newsletter editor at Scientific American. She writes the daily Today in Science newsletter and oversees all other newsletters at the magazine. In addition, she manages all special collector's editions and in the past was the editor for Scientific American Mind, Scientific American Space & Physics and Scientific American Health & Medicine. Gawrylewski got her start in journalism at the Scientist magazine, where she was a features writer and editor for "hot" research papers in the life sciences. She spent more than six years in educational publishing, editing books for higher education in biology, environmental science and nutrition. She holds a master's degree in earth science and a master's degree in journalism, both from Columbia University, home of the Pulitzer Prize.

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