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Canadian astronaut, Cmdr. Chris Hadfield has been orbiting Earth from the International Space Station since December, 2012. Earlier this month, he becomes the first Canadian commander of the ISS.
Hadfield has been
tweeting extraordinary images of Earth taken from his uniquely high vantage point. Read on to see some of his most beautiful pictures.
In this photo, Sydney, Australia glowing green and lovely in the night
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield)
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The Province of Syracuse at the very Southern tip of Sicily. A lovely view of Italy on the Festa del Papa.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield)
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Storm clouds standing tall in the atmosphere over Africa.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield)
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Adelaide, capital of South Australia, from space. The square of downtown parks really stands out.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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Pacific cloud snuggling up to Mexican rock.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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Mexico City, one of the largest metropolitan areas on Earth - housing roughly the same population as Australia.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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Sunglint catches the irrigation canals of these Mexican farmers.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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Monterrey, Mexico by night. The heights of the Cerro de la Silla give the city a breathtaking backdrop.
From orbit you see water in a whole new light. Pacific swirl off a Mexican promontory
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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From orbit you see water in a whole new light. Pacific swirl off a Mexican promontory.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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Rugged, wicked badlands of central Mexico.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. 3 million people on the Red Sea. You can see the road that leads to Mecca.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield)
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Dawn sneaking in under the Northern Lights. When we turn our lights down, nature lights up the sky.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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Christchurch, New Zealand, taken just after Earth Hour ended. The perfect grid system of the downtown core is clearly visible.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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Baltimore, Maryland, bright and clear. The major landmarks of the city all shining up through the night.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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San Francisco and the whole Bay Area. Taken at an angle, it is easy to see the entire layout of the bay by night.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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Chicago, a bright spot on the tip of Lake Michigan, glowing through the clouds.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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New York City, lit up like a bulb. The Statue of Liberty is clearly visible in the night from above.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with the lights of the city piercing through the clouds.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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Boston, Massachusetts. Everyone down there prepared to shine a little less brightly for an hour?
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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A gyre frozen into the ice, Newfoundland, Canada.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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Richmond, capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia. A vital crossroads for so much American history.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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The world-record tides of the Bay of Fundy sure do churn up the Annapolis Valley mud.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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Las Vegas, with the Strip distinctly standing out from the rest of the city, even from orbit.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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Washington, D.C., waiting for the green of Spring. Andrews Air Force Base visible at lower left.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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Airport, beach, coral, sunshine. A little bit of Cayman paradise.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield)
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Finger Lakes, New York. Glaciers clawed them into the earth as they retreated during the last Ice Age.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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Cape Breton. Every Canadian should walk the Cabot Trail. Rugged, beautiful bedrock of our country.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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Germany, the Rhine from Bonn to Koln, spanning from the Cathedral to the European Astronaut Centre.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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Koblenz, Germany, where the Mosel flows in to the Rhine. A key location, settled for over 2000 years.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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Bonn, capital of pre-unification West Germany, neatly clear in the March snow along the dark waters of the Rhine.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield
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The Nile and the Sinai, to Israel and beyond. One sweeping glance of human history.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield)
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Latakia (and Tartus), where Syria meets the Mediterranean. Serving as an important port city for thousands of years.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield)
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Shiraz, Iran - A city of culture and technology. The colorful roof choices complement the landscape well.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield)
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Baghdad, Iraq. Gigantic capital along the Tigris. Once the largest city on Earth, millions of us call this city home.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield)
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Homs, Syria. Currently enveloped in fighting - an uncertain future layered upon a storied past.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield)
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Paris sous le soleil. Les ombres de l'Arc de Triomphe et la Tour Eiffel sont a peine visible.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield)
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Venice, Italy - the red roofs and white docks of the famed island city are visible from orbit.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield)
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What is this little perfect round hole in Africa? Likely in Ethiopia near 7.99N, 37.19E.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield)
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Pretoria, South Africa, visibly between the Highveld and the Bushveld.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield)
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Intensive agriculture in a forbidding place, southern Africa. Like terraforming.
Credit: Twitter/Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield)