January 26, 2016

Experience the Earth Like an Astronaut: Glittering Blue

A cleverly stitched together set of imagery from Japanese weather satellite Himawari 8 creates a jaw-dropping HD time-lapse of a day-in-the-life of Earth—this is Glittering Blue

By Caleb A. Scharf

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This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American

We're more than half a century along in the 'space-age'. We've all seen the surfaces of other planets and worlds, from Mars to Titan, Venus to Pluto. But time and time again it's our home world, Earth, that is guaranteed to stop us in our tracks.

Using 24 hours of imagery from the Japanese Meteorological Agency's geo-stationary weather satellite Himawari-8, Charlie Loyd has created what may be (and I don't think I'm exaggerating) one of the most extraordinary and visceral visions of our blue, water-laced, world.

In time-lapse, compressing 24 hours of high definition pictures into a mere 12 seconds, we see the world as an astronaut in geostationary orbit (far above the usual perch of space stations) might see it. Colors are wonderful, both vibrant, yet subtle (and carefully tuned to mimic what we'd actually see). And the planet, well, the planet is so rich you could just about reach out and touch it.

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This YouTube version gives you just a taste of the real thing, which is much more spectacular. Watch this first, then go to Glittering Blue.

It's worth pointing out (as Loyd also does in an excellent FAQ), that Himawari-8 has a really nice camera - a 16-channel multi-spectral imager that scans Earth every 10 minutes. The Glittering Blue video has a resolution on the planetary surface of some 8 kilometers. This camera type is currently the best in the business, and a version is slated for the next US-run GOES satellite.

For now, sit back, scroll around your cradle of life.

It is stunning.

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