Astronauts on the space station see vibrant deserts, roiling storms, and volcanic eruptions. These are the best photos ever taken from the ISS.
Astronauts have lived on the International Space Station continuously for 20 years — the first expedition arrived on November 2, 2000.
Astronauts have taken millions of pictures of their breathtaking views throughout those two decades, capturing from sprawling city lights to volcanic eruptions.
Here are the 27 best photos ever taken from the ISS.
The first expedition to the International Space Station reached the orbiting laboratory on November 2, 2000 — exactly 20 years ago. Since then, not a day has gone by without astronauts zipping through space.
That's the longest-lasting human presence ever in space. In the last two decades, the people living on the ISS have taken millions of photos. The views can sometimes be hard to believe.
"How can something so beautiful be tolerated by human eyes?" NASA astronaut Mike Massimino told the Washington Post.
Here are 27 of the best photos ever taken from the space station.
The ISS has been orbiting Earth for nearly 22 years. Its first module launched into orbit on November 20, 1998.
After the first crew of astronauts arrived on November 2, 2000, they started snapping photos.
Astronauts have been capturing their breathtaking views from space ever since. They've taken millions of photos.
Source: NASA
Usually, about six people live and work together in the station, orbiting Earth every 90 minutes.
Source: NASA
That means they see 16 sunrises and sunsets every day.
Source: NASA
Today, the ISS orbits about 250 miles above Earth.
The astronauts inside don't always know or share much detail about the sights they see. But many say they never get bored with the views.
"I'm not sure I'd want to be in the same room with someone who could get tired of that," astronaut Kathy Sullivan told National Geographic.
Source: National Geographic
Some of the most colorful photos came from astronaut Scott Kelly, who shared many of his favorite views on social media.
From 2015 to 2016, Kelly spent 340 consecutive days on the space station. It was the longest single human spaceflight ever.
Source: NASA
When they fly over cities, astronauts can see details from above, like these colored salt ponds in Sfax, Tunisia.
On cloudless nights, some views are even more clear. They call Paris "the city of lights" for a reason.
Sometimes the clouds themselves make beautiful shapes. Astronauts can watch big storms from above.
They can even peer into the eyes of hurricanes.
When the Caribbean isn't plagued by cyclones, the Bahamas are a calm blue oasis from an astronaut's perspective.
This frozen lake in the Himalayas reveals a different kind of blue oasis.
The views aren't always calming, though. Volcano eruptions are easy to see from space as well.
"Not many artists in this world are as creative as Mother Nature," ISS commander Alexander Gerst told NASA about this image.
Source: NASA
The aurora borealis is one of nature's most fascinating artworks. It appears when electrically charged particles from the sun collide with oxygen and nitrogen in Earth's atmosphere.
Source: NASA
Astronauts and cosmonauts on the ISS can see the same phenomenon on the other side of the globe, too — the aurora australis.
Human activities can look artistic from above as well, like this launch of a Russian spacecraft.
Very few people have enjoyed these views: 241 people from 19 countries have visited the ISS.
Source: NASA
Astronauts have conducted 231 spacewalks since the station opened.
Source: NASA
Sometimes that's when they get the best vistas.
Behind them: the vacuum of space.
But even that void sometimes offers beautiful views.
"Orbiting Earth in the spaceship, I saw for the first time how beautiful our planet is," Yuri Gagarin, the first human in space, said in 1961. "Let us preserve and increase this beauty, and not destroy it."
Source: UNESCO
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