This stunning photo shows the well-lit cities of the East Coast of the U.S. as seen from the International Space Station.
The photo was clearly taken during night time on earth and shows the light pollution that comes from the populated Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, and New York metropolitan areas respectively.
While environmental purists may not be in favour of the excessive lights in cities, it certainly makes for a pretty picture.
Though the entire range of the east coast shown in the picture goes from Rhode Island all the way down to Virginia.
The lights are brightest in New York, which only seems fitting for the city that never sleeps.
The outline of Manhattan island and Long Island are easily visible before the light seem to fade out as it progresses into the suburbs.Following the straight line down the coast, Philadelphia and the Pittsburgh areas are next as the viewer follows what is likely Interstate 95 which runs straight down the coast.
The urban sprawl is seen in a very web-like way in the Pennsylvania cities, which differs from the way that the planned out spacing of Washington, D.C. allows the city’s grid to be visible to the viewer.
The photo was taken on February 6 when the Expedition 30 crew was on board the International Space Shuttle.
Viewers are given a glimpse of two Russian vehicles that are attached to the space station on the left side of the picture.
