Buzz
The long-standing belief that the Great Wall of China is easily visible from space has recently been debunked. Though the wall is extensive, its narrow width and blending with the landscape make it hard to distinguish from orbit. While this might come as a bit of a letdown, there are still countless other fascinating earthly sights visible from space, particularly when in low Earth orbit, where both satellites and the International Space Station (ISS) are stationed.
10. Open-Pit Mines
Open-pit mines are vast excavations where valuable resources like gold, copper, uranium, and more are extracted from the earth. This process involves digging deep into the ground, with the hole expanding both in depth and width as long as valuable materials continue to be found, making these pits grow to enormous sizes. Some of them are so large that they are as visible from space as any mountain or lake.
Take, for instance, the now-closed Mir diamond mine in Russia. Its size was so massive that authorities had to impose a no-fly zone around it. The 523-meter-deep (1,700 ft) and 1,200-meter-wide (3,900 ft) pit generated such a strong downdraft that it caused helicopters to fall from the sky. However, it’s not even the largest mine on Earth. That distinction belongs to the Bingham Canyon mine, also called the Kennecott copper mine, near Salt Lake City, Utah. The Bingham Canyon mine plunges to a depth of 1.2 kilometers (0.7 mi) and stretches 4.4 kilometers (2.7 mi) across. If you stacked two Empire State buildings, they still wouldn’t reach its rim, and the mine is set to expand even further until 2030. NASA astronauts captured this stunning image of the Bingham Canyon mine from the ISS.
9. The Seasons
Those who spend extended time in orbit can actually observe the changing seasons by tracking the planet's shifting landscape. But even those of us on the ground can witness this intriguing transformation, thanks to satellite imagery from NASA. When monthly photos of Earth are compiled into an animation, they showcase the shifting polar ice, the alternating wet and dry seasons in the tropics, and the cycles of plant growth and decay across the globe.
One of the most fascinating aspects is observing the annual expansion and retreat of Arctic ice. To give you an idea, Arctic sea ice typically covers around 15 million square kilometers (5.8 million sq mi) during the coldest months, then contracts to about half that size in the summer. In contrast, the Antarctic loses nearly all of its sea ice, dropping from 18 million to 3 million square kilometers (6.9 million to 1.2 million sq mi).
8. Wildfires
For those living in dry, arid regions, the constant threat of wildfires is a fact of life. The smoke and ash from these fires can obscure the sky for miles, producing so much smoke that even astronauts can spot the blaze from space. Shown above is a satellite image of the October 2003 Cedar Wildfire in California, which stretched from just north of Santa Barbara to the Mexican border. Fueled by strong Santa Ana winds, this fire, along with several others that month, scorched over 600,000 acres and caused multiple fatalities.
However, even fires of smaller scale can be seen from space. NASA has an extensive collection of images capturing the smoke from both large and small fires. One of the most intriguing is a photograph showing hundreds of fires burning simultaneously across Africa. Though widespread, the smoke here wasn’t caused by wildfires, but by numerous farmers intentionally setting their land on fire for agricultural reasons.
7. Volcanic Eruptions
While we would expect to see large volcanic eruptions from space, it may be surprising to learn that there are between 50 and 60 eruptions every year. On any given day, astronauts in orbit can observe plumes of ash and steam rising from one of these natural vents. Occasionally, even the volcano’s molten, glowing lava becomes visible from high above the Earth’s surface.
The Sarychev volcano (pictured above) in the northwest Pacific Ocean is among the most active volcanoes on Earth, having erupted eight times since 1946. During its 2009 eruption, shock waves created a gap in the clouds above the eruption, giving astronauts the chance to capture an incredibly clear image of the event. Other notable, highly active volcanoes include Mount Stromboli and Mount Etna in Italy, and Mount Yasur in Vanuatu, all of which have been erupting continuously for centuries, or even millennia.
6. Phytoplankton Blooms
Phytoplankton are tiny, plant-like organisms that can rapidly reproduce, leading to massive algal blooms on the ocean’s surface. These blooms can grow so dense and expansive that the only way to fully appreciate the size of the colony is from space. These blooms can stretch for hundreds of kilometers and, as they move with the ocean currents, they form striking and unexpected patterns of blue and green.
Phytoplankton blooms occur when ocean waters mix, providing the phytoplankton with ample sunlight and nutrients. These blooms then become a crucial food source for many marine species and play a key role in the ocean's food chain. They also act as significant carbon dioxide absorbers, offsetting about one-third of the CO2 emitted by human activity each year from burning fossil fuels. The bloom shown above occurred off the coast of Ireland in 2010 and was captured by NASA’s Terra satellite. It's believed that an eruption from Iceland’s Eyjafjallajokull volcano released iron and other nutrients that allowed the phytoplankton to thrive to such an extraordinary size.
5. The Border Between India and Pakistan
Space offers an unparalleled view of the vastness of Earth and the connections that bind us as humans. Yet, even from hundreds of kilometers above, certain harsh realities remain visible, such as the divisions we have created between one another.
Take, for example, the artificial border that separates India and Pakistan. These two nations are in such constant conflict that they’ve built a militarized border, which stays illuminated by floodlights at night to prevent the smuggling of weapons and illegal crossings. The intense, orange glow along the border makes the 2,900-kilometer (1,800 mi) boundary line clearly visible from the ISS. The border cuts through various landscapes, from cities to deserts, yet it remains lit all the way across.
For many years, the India-Pakistan border has been one of the most volatile zones in the world, marked by lawlessness, violence, and frequent deadly drone attacks.
4. The 9/11 Attack
NASA astronaut Frank Culbertson was the only American away from Earth during the September 11 terrorist attacks. However, that didn't prevent him from witnessing the aftermath of the destruction of the World Trade Center, an event that most of us only saw on the news.
While orbiting 330 kilometers (205 mi) above Earth aboard the ISS, Culbertson learned about the attacks just as the station was about to pass over New England. He quickly moved to a window and, sure enough, saw a massive plume of smoke rising from New York. Shocked, the astronaut captured a photograph of the scene, which has since become one of the most iconic images from that tragic day.
Later, scientists used satellite data to find that the plume from the World Trade Center rose to a height of 1.5 kilometers (0.9 mi) and drifted as far as 70 kilometers (43 mi). This cloud was filled with toxic particles, including cement, gypsum, asbestos, glass fibers, calcium carbonate, lead, and other metals. Essentially, it was a toxic dust, and inhaling it was like breathing in Drano.
3. The Borders Between Wealthy And Poorer Nations
Human civilizations have had such a profound effect on the planet that our political boundaries are now visible from hundreds of miles above. NASA astronaut John Grunsfeld, who has flown on the space shuttle five times, explained that affluent countries often appear in shades of green, while poorer nations with limited access to water are marked by a stark brown. Additionally, regions with less widespread electricity appear dim at night, creating a noticeable contrast with neighboring areas whose cities shine brightly.
This contrast is particularly striking when looking at the border between North and South Korea. At night, South Korea glows brightly, just like any developed country, while North Korea remains so dark it almost disappears. In the image above, South Korea is vividly lit on the bottom right (with Seoul being the brightest), and China is equally illuminated on the other side of the frame. But where is North Korea? No, it hasn’t sunk beneath the waves; it's the dark area nestled between the glowing lights of South Korea and China. (Note the curving orange border of the DMZ.) The only light in North Korea is the capital, Pyongyang. While the country isn't suffering from light pollution, this photo highlights how much of the nation likely lacks basic electricity, with consequences such as inadequate heating in winter, limited refrigeration, and insufficient medical care.
2. Dust Storms
To create a dust storm, three main ingredients are needed: wind, sand or dust, and dryness. When these elements converge under perfect conditions, powerful dust storms can form, blasting everything in their path with winds reaching speeds of up to 160 kilometers per hour (100 mph). These storms can become so vast that they are visible even from the International Space Station. For example, an astronaut captured the image above, showing an enormous dust plume emerging from Egypt, stretching nearly the entire length of the Red Sea.
Dust storms of this magnitude are not unique to one region. They regularly occur along the coasts of Africa, China, and other areas where trade winds can carry debris across thousands of miles. Saharan dust, for instance, can travel all the way to the northern Caribbean, turning the sky into a hazy, dirty canvas during the day and providing stunning, tangerine-colored sunsets. While dust storms can cause significant damage to buildings, wildlife, and people, they also serve a beneficial purpose by depositing valuable minerals and nutrients to plants in places like the Amazon.
1. Deforestation
Viewing the Earth from above offers a unique perspective, sometimes making it easier to truly comprehend what's unfolding on the planet. One such example of this is deforestation. If we were to observe from space for decades, we'd witness the same patterns that satellites have been tracking over the years: a steady and alarming decline in the number of trees in certain forests.
The image above, captured by NASA’s Landsat 1 satellite, marks the conclusion of a long series of photos that document the dramatic transformation of a section of the Amazon rainforest between 2000 and 2012. What was once a dense, thriving forest has now lost over 2,500 square kilometers (965 square miles) of trees over 37 years, leaving the area with only sparse patches of greenery. In total, the Amazon has lost more than 360,000 square kilometers (139,000 square miles) since the 1980s, primarily due to clear-cutting for roads, timber, agriculture, and other commercial activities.
