A lot of people have no doubt seen this photo already. I duplicate it because it is beautiful. (The photo was taken by Columbia last month, prior to the shuttle's ill fated re-entry into the atmosphere).



I can't quite see myself, but I am presumably in the photo somewhere.

(via Andrew Sullivan).

Update: Yes, yes, it's a composite. It's also shot in summer, as discussed in my comments section. It's still beautiful. What is the clump of light on the coast of Africa at the bottom of the picture three quarters of the way along? Lagos is presumably the feinter clump of lights above and to the left of the mail clumb. Port Harcourt is to the left of the bright section, so what is it? Any ideas?

Further Update: Just to make a reference to my previous posts, the Ruhr is clearly visible as the crescent to the right of Belgium/The Netherlands. (There is a larger and more detailed version of the photograph here). It is striking of course just how densely populated the Low Countries are in their entirety, although given how much time the Dutch have spent reclaiming the sea, it is perhaps not terribly surprising. It would be interesting to have a photo of Britain at night, so we can see how contiguous Manchester and Liverpool actually are.