Watch the Earth live

NASA joined forces with high-school students to conduct a new experiment destined for the International Space Station. The result is live streaming of the Earth from the ISS and, to top everything, the video quality is HD.

The High Definition Earth Viewing (HDEV) experiment is possible due to four HD cameras that have been placed, face down, on the exterior of the International Space Station.

As a consequence, anyone with an Internet connection can now enjoy live HD stream of our planet here.

Although the cameras are contained in a protective case, this does not keep them out of radiation’s way. Therefore, scientists can monitor how space affects filming cameras. This will help them on their future missions when they have to choose which type of equipment is most suited for their needs.

Students played an important role in the experiment by helping design some of the components for the cameras.

As the cameras are pointed downwards, towards Earth, some of the images recorded are spectacular. However, as the signal switches between cameras the stream feed will go down, turning the screen gray. It is also hard to see when the ISS is traveling on the dark side of the planet.