NASA was up recently to snapping some of the most spectacular images of the Solar System. From photographing sunrise from International Space Station to capturing India-Pakistan border in the night from Space, NASA has released some of the most stunning latest photos of Earth, Moon and the Sun.
On Saturday, Aug. 27, 2011, International Space Station astronaut Ron Garan used a high definition camera to film one of the sixteen sunrises astronauts see each day. This image shows the rising sun as the station flew along a path between Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and Buenos Aires, Argentina.
NASA
The India-Pakistan border appears as an orange line in this photograph taken by the Expedition 28 crew on the International Space Station (ISS) on August 21, 2011 and released September 4, 2011. The fence between the two countries is floodlit for surveillance purposes. Srinagar (L), Islamabad (bottom C), Lahore (centre near the border line) and Delhi (top C) can be seen as brighter spots.
REUTERS/NASA
This image of the moon's north polar region was taken by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera, or LROC. One of the primary scientific objectives of LROC is to identify regions of permanent shadow and near-permanent illumination. Since the start of the mission, LROC has acquired thousands of Wide Angle Camera images approaching the north pole. From these images, scientists produced this mosaic, which is composed of 983 images taken over a one month period during northern summer.
NASA/GSFC/Arizona State Univer
Katia was a tropical storm gathering energy over the Atlantic Ocean when one of the Expedition 28 crew took this photo on Aug. 31, 2011, from aboard the International Space Station. The picture, taken with a 12-mm focal length, was captured at 14:09:01 GMT. Later in the day Katia was upgraded to hurricane status. Two Russian spacecraft -- a Progress and a Soyuz --can be seen parked at the orbital outpost on the left side of the frame.
NASA
NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) image released on September 6, 2011 shows the Apollo 17 site on the moon, where the tracks laid down by the lunar rover are clearly visible, along with the last foot trails left on the moon. The images also show where the astronauts placed some of the scientific instruments that provided the first insight into the moon's environment and interior. LRO captured the sharpest images ever taken from space of the Apollo 12, 14 and 17 landing sites. Images show the twists and turns of the paths made when the astronauts explored the lunar surface. NASA says the image brightness and contrast have been altered to highlight surface details.
REUTERS/NASA's Goddard Space F
NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity used its navigation camera to take this picture showing a light-toned rock, nicknamed Tisdale 2, on its 2,690th Martian day, or sol, of the rover's work on Mars (Aug. 18, 2011). The rock is about 12 inches (30 centimeters) tall.
NASA/JPL-Caltech