Astronomy Picture of the Day ·

Earth at Night

The Astronomy Picture of the Day for December 7, 2012 is “Earth at Night,” an image. It is credited to Image Credit : NASA , NOAA NGDC , Suomi-NPP , Earth Observatory , Data and Processing: Chris Elvidge and Robert Simmon. The original explanation runs about 150 words.

Earth at Night
Credit: Image Credit : NASA , NOAA NGDC , Suomi-NPP , Earth Observatory , Data and Processing: Chris Elvidge and Robert Simmon Shown from science.nasa.gov. Not hosted by OpenOrbit.

From the explanation

“This remarkably complete view of Earth at night is a composite of cloud-free, nighttime images. The images were collected during April and October 2012 by the Suomi-NPP satellite from polar orbit about 824 kilometers (512 miles) above the surface using its Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite ( VIIRS ).”

— APOD editors, December 7, 2012

Read the full explanation on science.nasa.gov

At a glance

Date
December 7, 2012
Type
Image
Credit
Credit: Image Credit : NASA , NOAA NGDC , Suomi-NPP , Earth Observatory , Data and Processing: Chris Elvidge and Robert Simmon
Copyright
No copyright notice on the entry. Check the credited institution’s own usage rules before reusing it.
Explanation length
About 150 words

All of December 2012 → · 2012 by month → · Full archive since 1995 →

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Source

Copy taken Oct 28, 2026, 2:39 AM EDT. The image and explanation belong to their creators. OpenOrbit is not affiliated with or endorsed by NASA.