Space is an incredible place, not just forthe breathtaking views from new angles, but no doubt for the sheer feeling of insignificance the visions of our universe must give for astronauts lucky enough to blast off up and out of the atmosphere.
The International Space Station is in regular orbit around the Earth. Not only serving as a home to astronauts and cosmonauts but also functioning as a unique science laboratory.
Circling the Earth at roughly 250 miles up, travelling at 17,500 mph and orbiting the planet every 90 minutes, the space station bares witness to some pretty incredible views. We’ve gathered some of the most impressive for you to see.
An aurora timelapse
There are no images quite as impressive as shots of the Aurora Borealis taken from space. This one was taken by European Space Agency astronaut Thomas Pesquet while aboard the International Space Station.
More impressive though isthe timelapse videohe took of the lights.
SpaceX Crew Dragon silhouetted against Earth’s horizon
A while back, SpaceX carried out its first Demo-1 test flight of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program to the International Space Station. On 20 July 2025, a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft carrying a test dummy – named Ripley after Sigourney Weaver’s character in the Alien – was flown to the ISS.
The craft docked with the station’s Harmony module a day later delivering supplies and equipment before undocking and landing back on Earth on 8 March with Ripley intact. This image shows the craft silhouetted against Earth’s horizon. Demo-1 paves the way for the first manned flights to take place, expected to launch in November. SpaceX tried to mimic the conditions onboard to such an extent that Ripley was fitted with a full spacesuit.
SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavour
This image from the ISS shows the arrival of SpaceX Crew Dragon Endeavour. This craft was carrying Commander Shane Kimbrough and pilot Megan McArthur, along with astronauts Akihiko Hoshide and Thomas Pesquet who then boarded the ISS to join the crew of Expedition 65 on 15 June 2025.
Sun selfie
A close-up of the action shows one of the engineers on the space station carrying out repairs on the station during a spacewalk. This image was captured in 2017 and shows a brilliant view with the sun glaring in the distance.
“Expedition 32 flight engineer Suni Williams appears to touch the bright Sun during the mission’s third spacewalk. During the six-hour, 28-minute spacewalk, Williams and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Aki Hoshide (visible in the reflections of Williams' helmet visor), flight engineer, completed the installation of a Main Bus Switching Unit (MBSU) that was hampered last week by a possible misalignment and damaged threads where a bolt must be placed. "
London at Night
Viewed from above during the nighttime hours, London certainly looks impressive.
A nighttime flyover of London shows the lights of the city shining brightly and the twists and turns of the River Thames cutting through the middle.
Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, northern Colombia
Mountain ranges make for a regularly popular image of our world as captured by those orbiting above. Somehow these giant landmasses appear insignificant when seen from this view and yet they are some of the tallest and most impressive sights our Earth has to offer.
This photo of Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta was taken from 215 miles above:
“This early morning image, taken by astronauts looking from the International Space Station, shows a dramatic view of the many peaks of Colombia’s Santa Marta massif.
The highest of these (approximately 5700 m, 18,700 feet), named for Christopher Columbus, is so high that it supports a small but permanent snow cap (image far left), even though it lies only ten degrees north of the Equator.
The summits are so high that trees cannot grow–landscapes appear grey because only grass and small shrubs can survive the cold. Interestingly, glacial erosion features can be seen throughout the grey summit zone area–showing that an ice cap hundreds of times larger than the snow cap existed during the geologically recent ice ages.
Most of the image shows the lower slopes covered with the green tinge of forests. A forest fire gives off smoke in a large valley.
The Santa Marta snow cap is the only place where snow can be seen from the tropical beaches of the Caribbean coast, 45 km distant (outside the top of the image). The region is a tourist attraction because visitors experience changes in climate, landscapes, vegetation and wildlife as they ascend the mountains. The massif contains dozens of endemic species. Much of the massif is now protected as a national park, now designated as a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO in 1979. A 2013 report identifies the reserve as the most irreplaceable park in the world for threatened species.”
Scandinavia at night
Space is an incredible place, not just for the breathtaking views from new angles, but no doubt for the sheer feeling of insignificance the visions of our universe must give for astronauts lucky enough to blast off up and out of the atmosphere.
The International Space Station is in regular orbit around the Earth. Not only serves as a home to astronauts and cosmonauts but also functions as a unique science laboratory.
Circling the Earth at roughly 250 miles up, travelling at 17,500 mph and orbiting the planet every 90 minutes, the space station bears witness to some pretty incredible views. We’ve gathered some of the most impressive for you to see.
ISS repairs
Of course, orbiting the planet, the International Space Station needs regular repairs and these are parts of the duties of the crew. The highlights of their work include some pretty magnificent views:
“Backdropped by a colorful Earth, including land mass that covers parts of New Zealand, astronaut Robert L. Curbeam Jr. (left) and European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Christer Fuglesang, both STS-116 mission specialists, participate in the mission’s first of three planned sessions of extravehicular activity (EVA) as construction resumes on the International Space Station.”
The Nile at night
Another incredible view from the space station captured by NASA astronaut Scott Kelly (@StationCDRKelly) shows the view of the River Nile at nighttime.
The streetlights and lights from the cities and towns below look almost like fires burning on the Earth’s surface.
The deserts of Iran
What you’re seeing here isn’t weather patterns, but actually rock formations and the results of erosion.
The views of the deserts of Iran from space show some fascinating patterns in the surface below. Almost fluid-like, these sights are actually rock formations and the results of erosion too:
“As the International Space Station passed over the deserts of central Iran, including Kavir, one of the Expedition 38 crew members used a digital camera equipped with a 200mm lens to record this image featuring an unusual pattern of numerous parallel lines and sweeping curves.
The lack of soil and vegetation allows the geological structure of the rocks to appear quite clearly. According to geologists, the patterns result from the gentle folding of numerous, thin, light and dark layers of rock. Later erosion by wind and water, say the scientists, cut a flat surface across the folds, not only exposing hundreds of layers but also showing the shapes of the folds.
The dark water of a lake (image centre) occupies a depression in a more easily eroded, S-shaped layer of rock. The irregular light-toned patch just left of the lake is a sand sheet thin enough to allow the underlying rock layers to be detected. A small river snakes across the bottom of the image. In this desert landscape, there are no fields or roads to give a sense of scale. In fact, the image width represents a distance of 65 kilometres.”
