Earth Day 2017: Amazing NASA Photos of Our Planet from Space

Blue Bermuda

As seen from above, Berumda shines bright blue. From NASA, "Bermuda is a British Overseas Territory in the western Atlantic off the east coast of North America."

Educational Earth

The letter "Y" as seen from space. From NASA, "NASA's Earth Observatory has tracked down images resembling all 26 letters of the English alphabet using only NASA satellite imagery and astronaut photography. In this image, the letter 'Y' is for yardangs, elongated landforms sculpted by erosion and similar to sand dunes, but instead comprised of sandstone or siltstone."

Circles on Circles

In Northwest Australia, Adele Island as seen from above. From NASA, "Astronauts aboard the International Space Station took this detailed image of a tiny island with many concentric zones around it. Adele Island, off Australia's north coast, is only 2.9 km (2 mi) long, but the entire tidal zone with all the concentric zones is 24.5 km (15.2 mi) long, surrounded by extensive sandbanks in the tidally exposed area."

Land of Fire

A composite image of Earth art from Australia. From NASA, "On Oct. 12-13, 2015, NASA astronaut Scott Kelly shared a series of seventeen photographs taken from the International Space Station during a flyover of Australia. This first photo of the series was shared on Twitter with the caption, '#EarthArt in one pass over the #Australian continent. Picture 1 of 17. #YearInSpace.'"

As Seen ... From Mars

Earth and its moon seen from Mars. From NASA, "Here is a view of Earth and its moon, as seen from Mars. It combines two images acquired on Nov. 20, 2016, by the HiRISE camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, with brightness adjusted separately for Earth and the moon to show details on both bodies."

Dark Marble

A composite image of Earth at night, as seen from space. From NASA: "NASA scientists are releasing new global maps of Earth at night, providing the clearest yet composite view of the patterns of human settlement across our planet. This composite image, one of three new full-hemisphere views, provides a view of the Americas at night."

Ice Shelf

As seen from above during NASA's Operation IceBridge mission, the Getz Ice Shelf. From NASA, "As scientists and crew with NASA’s Operation IceBridge mission prepared for a research flight on Nov. 5, 2016, the weather in Punta Arenas, Chile, was cold, wet, and windy. But when they reached their survey site in West Antarctica, skies were clear and winds were calm

Long History of Images

This image of Earth was captured by the astronauts of the Gemini VI mission. From NASA, "This photograph of the Florida Straits and Grand Bahama Bank was taken during the Gemini IV mission during orbit no. 19, on June 4, 1965. The Gemini IV crew conducted scientific experiments, including photography of Earth's weather and terrain, for the remainder of their four-day mission following Ed White's historic spacewalk on June 3."

A Grand Scene

The entire Grand Canyon National Park, as seen from above. From NASA, "To celebrate the centennial of the U.S National Park Service, Expedition 48 Commander Jeff Williams of NASA has taken hundreds of images of national parks from his vantage point in low Earth orbit, aboard the International Space Station. Here, a series of Williams' photographs are assembled into this composite image of the Grand Canyon."

Bahama Mama!

Great Exuma Island, Bahamas, as seen from above. From NASA, "An astronaut aboard the International Space Station took this photograph of small island cays in the Bahamas and the prominent tidal channels cutting between them. For astronauts, this is one of the most recognizable points on the planet.:

Ever-changing

The Larsen Ice Shelf as seen from space. From NASA, "The Larsen Ice Shelf is situated along the northeastern coast of the Antarctic Peninsula, one of the fastest-warming places on the planet. In the past three decades, two large sections of the ice shelf (Larsen A and B) collapsed. A third section (Larsen C) seems like it may be on a similar trajectory, with a new iceberg poised to break away soon."