NASA astronaut Ricky Arnold shared this photograph of the Everglades National Park in Florida, taken from his vantage point in low Earth orbit aboard the International Space Station. NASA released this image April 26, 2018.
NASA
The U.S. National Park Service celebrated its annual National Park Week this year from April 21-29. Called a week, the event lasted nine days instead of seven to cover two weekends, allowing more people to make the most of the country’s natural bounty.
The theme for the 2018 celebration was “Park Stars” and the starry skies visible from the open spaces of national parks was only one of the references in that name.
For its part, NASA participated in the event too, by sharing a series of images captured from space that show some of the country’s national parks from point of view that isn’t otherwise visible to most people. That is because those images are captured from the vantage point of space, and well, most people aren’t likely to go there any time soon.
The images — some of them stitched together from multiple photographs — were taken from various spacecraft, including the International Space Station. Some photographs were taken by U.S. astronauts aboard the ISS, while others were taken by instruments, some on the ISS and others on other spacecraft — such as LandSat — controlled by people down here on Earth.
Another composite image, made from individual photographs taken from aboard the International Space Station, shows Badlands National Park, South Dakota.
NASA
Alaska's Denali National Park is seen in this composite image, made up of photographs taken from the International Space Station. With an elevation of 6,190 meters, Denali is the tallest mountain in North America.
NASA
The Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming, as seen from the International Space Station, July 27, 2016.
NASA
This image shows fog covering the Northern Rockies — including the Glacier National Park in Montana — that cuts across the U.S.-Canada border. Photographs for this image were captured by NASA astronaut Jeff Williams, aboard the International Space Station, in 2016.
NASA
A composite image shows a wide view of the Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. The constituent photographs were taken by U.S. astronaut Jeff Williams in 2016 from aboard the International Space Station.
NASA
This Earth observation composite of White Sands National Monument, New Mexico, was created from images taken by Expedition 48 Commander Jeff Williams of NASA from his vantage point aboard the International Space Station.
NASA
Marking the centennial of the U.S. National Park Service, Expedition 48 Commander Jeff Williams of NASA photographed the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument, Washington, from his vantage point aboard the International Space Station.
NASA
The Olympic National Park in Washington state is seen in this composite image, captured from the International Space Station.
NASA
This composite image gives a bird's eye view of the Badwater Basin in the Death Valley National Park, California. This place, 282 feet below sea level, is the lowest point in North America.
NASA
NASA astronaut Ricky Arnold captured this clear view of Mount Rainier National Park, in Washington state, as the International Space Station orbited above, sharing the image with his followers on April 25 to celebrate National Park Week.
NASA
At NASA's Johnson Space Center, photographs of the Black Hills — spread from South Dakota to Wyoming — were assembled into this composite image. The hills are home to Mount Rushmore, which is a national memorial, as well as a national park, a state park and a national forest.
NASA
From the International Space Station, NASA astronaut Jeff Williams marked the centennial of the U.S. National Park Service, photographing the patterns and features of Katmai National Park, Alaska.
NASA
A series of photographs, taken from the International Space Station, were put together to create this composite image of the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area in Utah. This image was released in 2016, the hundredth year of the existence of the National Park Service.
NASA
Commander of Expedition 48 to the International Space Station, Jeff Williams, took a series of photographs to create this composite image of Yosemite National Park, California. This image was released July 19, 2016, to celebrate 100 years of the National Parks Service.
NASA
The Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve is seen in this composite image, put together from three photographs taken by U.S. astronaut Jeff Williams, aboard the International Space Station in 2016.
NASA
The image shows a portion of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park in Maryland, Sept. 27, 2016. The park is spread across D.C., Maryland and West Virginia.
NASA Earth Observatory image by Jesse Allen, using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey
The student-controlled EarthKAM camera aboard the International Space Station captured this photograph of the Grand Canyon, most of which is in Arizona, April 3, 2017.
Sally Ride EarthKAM