NASA Terra spacecraft captured this image of the city of Jhudo, Pakistan, and surrounding countryside on Sept. 24, 2011. Torrential monsoon rains in south Asia have displaced hundreds of thousands of residents in India, Pakistan and Thailand.

NASA Spacecraft Images Severe Flooding in South Asia

NASA image acquired April 18 - October 23, 2012 This image of Asia and Australia at night is a composite assembled from data acquired by the Suomi NPP satellite in April and October 2012. The new data was mapped over existing Blue Marble imagery of Earth to provide a realistic view of the planet. The nighttime view was made possible by the new satellite’s “day-night band” of the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite. VIIRS detects light in a range of wavelengths from green to near-infrared and uses filtering techniques to observe dim signals such as city lights, gas flares, auroras, wildfires, and reflected moonlight. In this case, auroras, fires, and other stray light have been removed to emphasize the city lights. “Night time imagery provides an intuitively graspable view of our planet,” says William Stefanov, a scientist in NASA’s International Space Station program office who has worked with similar images from astronauts. “City lights are an excellent means to track urban and suburban growth, which feeds into planning for energy use and urban hazards, for studying urban heat islands, and for initializing climate models.” Named for satellite meteorology pioneer Verner Suomi, NPP flies over any given point on Earth's surface twice each day at roughly 1:30 a.m. and p.m. The polar-orbiting satellite flies 824 kilometers (512 miles) above the surface, sending its data once per orbit to a ground station in Svalbard, Norway, and continuously to local direct broadcast users distributed around the world. The mission is managed by NASA with operational support from NOAA and its Joint Polar Satellite System, which manages the satellite's ground system. NASA Earth Observatory image by Robert Simmon, using Suomi NPP VIIRS data provided courtesy of Chris Elvidge (NOAA National Geophysical Data Center). Suomi NPP is the result of a partnership between NASA, NOAA, and the Department of Defense. Caption by Mike Carlowicz. Instrument: Suomi NPP - VIIRS Credit: <a href="http://www.earthobservatory.nasa.gov/" rel="nofollow"> NASA Earth Observatory</a> Click here to view all of the <a href="http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Features/NightLights/" rel="nofollow"> Earth at Night 2012 images </a> Click here to <a href="http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/view.php?id=79790" rel="nofollow"> read more </a> about this image <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelines.html" rel="nofollow">NASA image use policy.</a> <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/home/index.html" rel="nofollow">NASA Goddard Space Flight Center</a> enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on <a href="http://twitter.com/NASAGoddardPix" rel="nofollow">Twitter</a> Like us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Greenbelt-MD/NASA-Goddard/395013845897?ref=tsd" rel="nofollow">Facebook</a> Find us on <a href="http://instagram.com/nasagoddard?vm=grid" rel="nofollow">Instagram</a>

This region of central Asia is situated at the juncture of Mongolia, China and Russia. This image from NASA Terra satellite is MISR Mystery Image Quiz #7.

Where on Earth...? MISR Mystery Image Quiz #7: Torey Lakes, Central Asia

iss071e462180 (Aug. 9, 2024) --- Lake Assad in Syria (upper right) and lakes created by hydroelectric dams in Turkiye, all along the Euphrates River, are pictured from the International Space Station as it orbited 263 miles above the Turkish nation that connects Europe with Asia.

Lakes in Syria and Turkiye

iss073e0204297 (May 25, 2025) --- Lightning illuminates the clouds (left), city lights line the coast of Vietnam, and lights on fishing boats dot the South China Sea in this photograph from the International Space Station as it orbited 259 miles above Southeast Asia.

Lightning illuminates the clouds above Southeast Asia

iss073e0204578 (May 25, 2025) --- Lightning illuminates the clouds (top left) above Southeast Asia in this photograph from the International Space Station as it orbited 259 miles over the South China Sea and off the coast of the Malaysian state of Sarawak on the island of Borneo.

Lightning illuminates the clouds above Southeast Asia

iss073e0415606 (June 21, 2025) --- The International Space Station soars 259 miles above Cambodia in this long-duration photograph revealing star trails, lightning storms, and the city lights of Southeast Asia streaking below.

The city lights of Southeast Asia streaking below the International Space Station

NASA’s DC-8 Aircraft is Prepared for an International Air Quality Research Mission

Isac Mata, engineering technician at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center, attends to the interior of the DC-8 aircraft at Building 703 in Palmdale, CA. The DC-8 aircraft is prepared for its last mission, ASIA-AQ (Airborne and Satellite Investigation of Asian Air Quality), that will collect detailed air quality data over several locations in Asia to improve the understanding of local air quality in collaboration with local scientists, air quality agencies, and government partners

NASA’s DC-8 Aircraft is Prepared for an International Air Quality Research Mission

Alan Hills fills liquid nitrogen in the Trace Organic Gas Analyzer (TOGA) instrument onboard the DC-8 aircraft at Building 703 in Palmdale, CA. This instrument measures volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the atmosphere. The DC-8 aircraft is prepared for its last mission, ASIA-AQ (Airborne and Satellite Investigation of Asian Air Quality), that will collect detailed air quality data over several locations in Asia to improve the understanding of local air quality in collaboration with local scientists, air quality agencies, and government partners

NASA’s DC-8 Aircraft is Prepared for an International Air Quality Research Mission

DC-8 aircraft conducts test flights at Building 703 in Palmdale, CA. The DC-8 aircraft is prepared for its last mission, ASIA-AQ (Airborne and Satellite Investigation of Asian Air Quality), that will collect detailed air quality data over several locations in Asia to improve the understanding of local air quality in collaboration with local scientists, air quality agencies, and government partners

NASA’s DC-8 Aircraft is Prepared for an International Air Quality Research Mission

Kat Ball, Chemical Engineering Ph.D candidate at Caltech, attends to the Chemical Ionization Mass Spectrometer (CIMS) rack onboard the DC-8 aircraft at Building 703 in Palmdale, CA. The DC-8 aircraft is prepared for its last mission, ASIA-AQ (Airborne and Satellite Investigation of Asian Air Quality), that will collect detailed air quality data over several locations in Asia to improve the understanding of local air quality in collaboration with local scientists, air quality agencies, and government partners

NASA’s DC-8 Aircraft is Prepared for an International Air Quality Research Mission

DC-8 aircraft conducts test flights at Building 703 in Palmdale, CA. The DC-8 aircraft is prepared for its last mission, ASIA-AQ (Airborne and Satellite Investigation of Asian Air Quality), that will collect detailed air quality data over several locations in Asia to improve the understanding of local air quality in collaboration with local scientists, air quality agencies, and government partners

NASA’s DC-8 Aircraft is Prepared for an International Air Quality Research Mission

Scientists Ryan Boyd (left) and Vladislav Sevostianov (right) attend to the Optical Payload for Lasercomm Science (OPALS) instrument on the exterior the DC-8 aircraft at Building 703 in Palmdale, CA. The DC-8 aircraft is prepared for its last mission, ASIA-AQ (Airborne and Satellite Investigation of Asian Air Quality), that will collect detailed air quality data over several locations in Asia to improve the understanding of local air quality in collaboration with local scientists, air quality agencies, and government partners

The ASTER instrument onboard NASA Terra spacecraft imaged the Khyber Pass, a mountain pass that links Afghanistan and Pakistan. Throughout its history it has been an important trade route between Central Asia and South Asia.

Khyber Pass, Afghanistan-Pakistan

iss073e0134504 (May 22, 2025) --- This long-duration photograph taken from the International Space Station orbiting 259 miles above the South China Sea highlights the city lights of Southeast Asia streaking below, a lightning storm near the top of Earth's horizon, and star trails above an atmopsheric glow.

The city lights of Southeast Asia streak below the International Space Station

Myanmar’s (Burma) Irrawaddy Delta—an important agricultural region in Southeast Asia

Coastal Asia as seen from the ISS

ISS01-E-5082 (December 2000) --- This image of coastal Asia was taken from the International Space Station with a digital still camera and a 400mm lens with a very narrow field of view. Early in the Space Station Program, communications with the crew are less direct, and the exact time that this image was taken could not be determined. Because there are relatively few photograph of Earth taken with this long lens, and because the times are not available to calculate the exact position of the Station over the Earth when the photograph was taken, the exact location of the photograph cannot be determined. Many of these logistical problems will be resolved as camera equipment is replaced and communications with the crew improve. Catalogers believe the coast most resembles Indonesia, and this determination will be maintained until future images allow correction and refinement of the location. The photograph is a striking example of the degree to which humans modify coastal environments. The large green squares in the image probably represent a combination of rice cultivation and aquaculture.

The city lights of Southeast Asia and lightning storms streak below the International Space Station

iss072e860745 (March 26, 2025) --- This long-duration photograph taken from the International Space Station as it orbited 259 miles above the Andaman Sea reveals the city lights of Southeast Asia and the typical green lights of the fishing boats underneath Earth's atmospheric glow. In the background, a star-filled sky and the Milky Way sparkle above the planet. Credit: NASA/Don Pettit

The city lights of Southeast Asia underneath Earth's atmospheric glow

The warm city lights of Southeast Asia streak below the International Space Station

iss073e0507880 (July 26, 2025) --- The warm city lights of Southeast Asia streak below the silvery U.S. segment of the International Space Station in this 30-second exposure from the orbital outpost as it soared 259 miles above China at approximately 10:39 a.m. local time. Near the top center, is the partially obscured SpaceX Dragon spacecraft that docked to the Harmony module's forward port carrying NASA's Crew-11 mission.

The city lights of Central Asia sparkle underneath a bright yellow airglow

iss073e0920829 (Oct. 20, 2025) --- This celestial view from a window aboard the SpaceX Dragon crew spacecraft captures the city lights of Central Asia sparkling underneath a bright yellow airglow as an orbital sunrise begins to illuminate Earth's atmosphere underneath a starry night sky. The International Space Station was orbiting 263 miles above Uzbekistan at approximately 4:40 a.m. local time when this long-exposure photograph was taken.

The 5000 meter 16,000 feet high Tibetan Plateau has been formed by the collision of the Indian subcontinent with central Asia.

Western Tibet, Shaded Relief with Color as Height

The Sinai Peninsula, located between Africa and Asia, is a result of those two continents pulling apart from each other.

Sinai Peninsula, Shaded Relief and Colored Height

View of Earth, showing Africa, Europe and Asia taken by Apollo 11 crewmember

AS11-36-5355 (17 July 1969) --- Most of Africa and portions of Europe and Asia can be seen in this spectacular photograph taken from the Apollo 11 spacecraft during its trans-lunar coast toward the moon. Apollo 11, with astronauts Neil A. Armstrong, commander; Michael Collins, command module pilot; and Edwin E. Aldrin Jr., lunar module pilot, onboard was already 98,000 nautical miles from Earth when this picture was made. While astronauts Armstrong and Aldrin descended in the Lunar Module (LM) "Eagle" to explore the Sea of Tranquility region of the moon, astronaut Collins remained with the Command and Service Modules (CSM) "Columbia" in lunar orbit.

The DC-8 aircraft returns to the hangar at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center Building 703 in Palmdale, California, on April 1, 2024, after completing its final mission supporting Airborne and Satellite Investigation of Asian Air Quality (ASIA-AQ).

NASA’s DC-8 Returns from Final Mission

STS-57 Earth observation of the Eastern Mediterranean, Nile River, Asia Minor

STS057-73-075 (21 June-1 July 1993) --- Eastern Mediterranean from an unusually high vantage point over the Nile River, this north-looking view shows not only the eastern Mediterranean but also the entire landmass of Asia Minor, with the Black Sea dimly visible at the horizon. Many of the Greek islands can be seen in the Aegean Sea (top left), off the coast of Asia Minor. Cyprus is visible under atmospheric dust in the northeast corner of the Mediterranean. The dust cloud covers the east end of the Mediterranean, its western edge demarcated by a line that cuts the center of the Nile Delta. This dust cloud originated far to the west, in Algeria, and moved northeast over Sicily, southern Italy, and Greece. Part of the cloud then moved on over the Black Sea, but another part swerved southward back towards Egypt. A gyre of clouds in the southeast corner of the Mediterranean indicates a complementary counterclockwise (cyclonic) circulation of air. The Euphrates River appears as a thin green line (upper right) in the yellow Syrian Desert just south of the blue-green mountains of Turkey. The Dead Sea (lower right) lies in a rift valley which extends north into Turkey and south thousands of miles down the Gulf of Aqaba, the Red Sea, and on through East Africa. The straight international boundary between Israel and Egypt (where the coastline angles) is particularly clear in this view, marked by the thicker vegetation on the Israeli side of the border. The green delta of the Nile River appears in the foreground, with the great conurbation of Cairo seen as a gray area at the apex of the triangle. Most of Egypt's 52 million inhabitants live in the delta. On the east side of the delta, the Suez Canal is visible. On the western corner of the delta lies the ancient city of Alexandria, beside the orange and white salt pans. The World War II battlesite El Alamein lies on the coast.

NASA's EMIT Measures Surface Dust in North Africa, Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia

This image shows locations in parts of North Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and Central Asia observed by NASA's Earth Surface Mineral Dust Source Investigation (EMIT). Each blue box is a "scene" the instrument, which is aboard the International Space Station, has captured. The red box indicates where the instrument recently gathered data on three minerals in a location in southwest Libya, in the Sahara Desert. Installed on the space station in July 2022, EMIT orbits Earth about once every 90 minutes to map the world's mineral-dust sources, gathering information about surface composition as the instrument completes about 16 orbits per day. Over the course of its 12-month mission, EMIT will collect measurements of 10 important surface minerals – kaolinite, hematite, goethite, illite, vermiculite, calcite, dolomite, montmorillonite, chlorite, and gypsum – in arid regions between 50-degree south and north latitudes in Africa, Asia, North and South America, and Australia. The data EMIT collects will help scientists better understand the role of airborne dust particles in heating and cooling Earth's atmosphere on global and regional scales. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA25429

Earth Observations taken by the Expedition 23 Crew

NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center Director Brad Flick smiles as members of the DC-8 team gather and exchange congratulations after the aircraft and crew return to NASA Armstrong’s Building 703 in Palmdale, California, on April 1, 2024, following the aircraft’s final mission in support of the Airborne and Satellite Investigation of Asian Air Quality (ASIA-AQ).

NASA’s DC-8 Returns from Final Mission

From left, Wayne Ringelberg, chief pilot at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, is welcomed by Michael Thomson, director of NASA Armstrong’s Science Mission Directorate, and Kirsten Boogaard, NASA’s DC-8 project manager, after the DC-8 aircraft and crew return to NASA Armstrong’s Building 703 in Palmdale, California, on April 1, 2024, following the aircraft’s final mission in support of the Airborne and Satellite Investigation of Asian Air Quality (ASIA-AQ).

The DC-8 aircraft returned to NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center Building 703 in Palmdale, California, on April 1, 2024, after completing its final mission supporting Airborne and Satellite Investigation of Asian Air Quality (ASIA-AQ). The aircraft and crew were welcomed back with a celebratory water salute by the U.S. Air Force Plant 42 Fire Department.

NASA’s DC-8 Returns from Final Mission

Walter Klein, DC-8 navigator, exits the aircraft cabin and is welcomed with applause from a supportive team after the DC-8 aircraft and crew return to NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center Building 703 in Palmdale, California, on April 1, 2024, following the aircraft’s final mission in support of the Airborne and Satellite Investigation of Asian Air Quality (ASIA-AQ).

NASA’s DC-8 Returns from Final Mission

NASA DC-8 crew members Nickelle “Nicki” Reid, operations engineer, left, and Isac Mata, engineer technician, exchange in a heartfelt hug after the DC-8 aircraft and crew return to NASA Armstrong’s Building 703 in Palmdale, California, on April 1, 2024, following the aircraft’s final mission in support of the Airborne and Satellite Investigation of Asian Air Quality (ASIA-AQ). Smiling in the background is Michael Thomson, director of NASA Armstrong’s Science Mission Directorate.

From left, Andy Barry, DC-8 pilot; Todd Renfro, flight navigator; and Adam Devalon, flight engineer, share smiles after the DC-8 aircraft and crew return to NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center Building 703 in Palmdale, California, on April 1, 2024, following the aircraft’s final mission in support of the Airborne and Satellite Investigation of Asian Air Quality (ASIA-AQ).

NASA’s DC-8 Returns from Final Mission

NASA’s DC-8 operations engineer, Nickelle “Nicki” Reid, left, embraces Katherine Ball, chemical engineering Ph.D. candidate at California Institute of Technology, after the DC-8 aircraft and crew return to NASA Armstrong’s Building 703 in Palmdale, California, on April 1, 2024, following the aircraft’s final mission in support of the Airborne and Satellite Investigation of Asian Air Quality (ASIA-AQ).

NASA’s DC-8 Returns from Final Mission

Kelly Jellison, avionics lead, and Tim Sandon, flight engineer, exit the DC-8 aircraft cabin and are welcomed with applause from a supportive team after the DC-8 aircraft and crew return to NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center Building 703 in Palmdale, California, on April 1, 2024, following the aircraft’s final mission in support of the Airborne and Satellite Investigation of Asian Air Quality (ASIA-AQ).

The Eastern U.S., Europe, and Japan are brightly lit by their cities, while interiors of Africa, Asia, Australia, and South America are dark and lightly populated in this image created in 2000 by NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.

Global City Lights

The Greek islands of the Aegean Sea, scattered across 800 kilometers from north to south and between Greece and western Turkey, are uniquely situated at the intersection of Europe, Asia and Africa. This image from NASA Terra satellite was acquired on Se

Islands in the Midst of the World

GMT039_13_17_Jasmin Moghbeli_SN1018_Snow-covered Mountains Asia 50-500mm

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Unusually warm ocean temperatures off Asia and cool waters in the eastern and equatorial Pacific are signaling La Niña mild return, according to the latest sea-surface heights observed by the joint NASA-French space agency TOPEX/Poseidon satellite.

TOPEX/El Niño Watch - Mild La Niña Conditions Developing, November 12, 1999

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STS102-328-028 (13 March 2001) --- The Space Shuttle Discovery's payload bay and vertical stabilizer are backdropped over Southeast Asia in this 35mm scene.

The orbiter payload bay is photographed from U.S. Laboratory

Lake Balkhash

iss066e089960 (Dec. 11, 2021) --- Kazakhstan's snowy, northeast border with Russia is pictured from the International Space Station as it orbited 266 miles above central Asia.

Earth Observations taken by Expedition 66 crew

iss059e067877 (May 19, 2019) --- The International Space Station flies 255 miles above Indonesia as the sun's glint beams off the Celebes Sea in southeast Asia.

Earth observation taken by Expedition 59 crew

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Earth observations taken from shuttle Discovery during STS-85 mission

STS085-503-061 (7 - 19 August 1997) --- Lakes Balkhash and Alakol, southern uplands of Kazakhstan, central Asia. The long, 600 kilometers arc of Lake Balkhash occupies the center of this clear west-looking view. The left of the view shows clearly the westernmost Dzungarian Basin in the autonomous region of Xinjiang Uygur (Sinkiang), China. Kazakhstan's capital city Almaty (Alma-Ata) lies out of sight behind the boom. The Dzungarian Gate is the straight, fault-bounded valley cutting through the Dzhungarskiy Alatau Range. The Gate has acted as a major pass for centuries, allowing access between east Asia and central Asia (the valley floor is about 1,500 feet, whereas peaks reach 15,000 feet on the west and about 10,000 feet on the east side) -- it was one of the routes used by the Mongols when they began their invasion of central Asia and Europe in the 13th century. Lake Ebinur is the bright area beneath the dust plume (left center); strong north winds from the steppes of Kazakhstan and Russia are funneled through the Dzungarian Gate where they pick up sediment from dry lakebeds and blow it into China. The Ili River flows westward, parallel to the Dzhungarskiy Alatau Range, through Kapchagay Lake (partially visible beneath boom), then northwest across a large delta plain and into Lake Balkhash.

iss065e009308 (April 28, 2021) --- The early morning hues of an orbital sunrise are pictured from the International Space Station as it soared 264 miles above the China-Russia border in far eastern Asia near the the Sea of Japan.

Earth observation taken during Expedition 65

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ISS027-E-013302 (15 April 2011) --- This photo captured by one of the Expedition 27 crew members aboard the International Space Station features Earth's atmospheric limb and sunset over southwestern Asia.

Earth Observations taken by the Expedition 27 Crew

iss065e009307 (April 28, 2021) --- The early morning hues of an orbital sunrise are pictured from the International Space Station as it soared 264 miles above the China-Russia border in far eastern Asia near the the Sea of Japan.

Earth observation taken during Expedition 65

S88-E-5037 (12-05-98)--- Clouds over Asia form the backdrop for this scene of Unity following its successful mating to Endeavour's docking system. The photo was taken at 23:53:02 GMT, Dec. 5.

Node 1 installed on the ODS

The Bosphorus Strait splits the city of Istanbul, Türkiye

iss065e444007 (Oct. 8, 2021) --- Heaven Lake rests in the crater of the active volcano Paektu Mountain that lies on the China-North Korea border. The International Space Station was orbiting 263 miles above Asia at the time this photograph was taken.

Earth observation taken by Expedition 65 crew

The Himalayas separate China from a cloudy India

The Tashkurgan River in western China

Ural Mountains, Russia

This image from NASA Terra spacecraft shows the Ural Mountains, which run 2500 km north-south through western Russia, and form the boundary between Europe and Asia. Since the 17th century, the mountains were exploited for their deposits of iron, copper, gold, coal, oil, mica and gemstones. The Urals are among the world's oldest existing mountain ranges, having been formed about 275 million years ago due to the collision of the Laurussia supercontinent with the continent of Kazakhstania. The image was acquired July 13, 2011, covers an area of 39 by 62 km, and is located near 65.5 degrees north, 59.9 degrees east. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA19795