Fusion of NASA image and Landsat-5 images over Hong Kong for year 2003.

Can you imagine how the Earth is seen at night from space?

This spectacular night image was acquired by Astronaut Donald R. Pettit and his crew of Expedition 6 using a digital camera from the International Space Station on March 10, 2003 at an altitude of 385 km.

Let's try hover your mouse cursor over the image to switch between day and night of Hong Kong!

(Source of imagery: NASA. Courtesy of Donald R. Pettit.)

Can you answer these questions?

  1. Where are most of the nighttime lights located?
  2. Why are they located in those areas?
  3. How do you account for the variation in nighttime lights in Hong Kong and Shenzhen?