Black Marble
NASA Earth Observatory, 2012
The day is gone and the cities remain, frost on a dark continent. The gaps between the lights are where the people are not. Turn the lamps off and the planet disappears.
About this work
NASA's Black Marble shows North and South America at night. It is a composite of data gathered by the Suomi NPP satellite in April and October 2012, laid over NASA's existing Blue Marble imagery of the daytime Earth so that the continents keep a realistic look. The night lights come from the satellite's "day-night band", part of an instrument called the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS). It detects light from green to near-infrared wavelengths and uses filtering to pick up very dim signals: city lights, gas flares, auroras, wildfires and reflected moonlight. For this image, the auroras, fires and other stray light were removed so that only the lights of towns and cities remain. Suomi NPP, the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership, was launched in 2011 as a pathfinder for the next generation of U.S. polar-orbiting weather satellites and is operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. NASA Earth Observatory released the image, and it is in the public domain.
Sources: Wikimedia Commons · Wikipedia: Suomi NPP
Print facts
- Native resolution
- 8,192 × 8,192 px
- Sharp at 150 ppi up to
- 54 × 54 in
- Sizes
- Small (20 × 20 in) · $100 · 410 ppi
Medium (24 × 24 in) · $150 · 341 ppi
Large (36 × 36 in) · $300 · 228 ppi - Price includes
- Frame and US shipping · 14–21 days · 30-day returns
FAQ
Where can I buy a framed print of Black Marble?
Here. Black Marble is available as a framed print in three sizes: Small (20 × 20 in) for $100, Medium (24 × 24 in) for $150 and Large (36 × 36 in) for $300. Prices include the frame and US shipping; delivery takes 14–21 days, with 30-day returns.
What size works best for Black Marble?
The file is 8,192 × 8,192 px, so every size is sharp: even Large (36 × 36 in) prints at 228 ppi. Choose Large (36 × 36 in) for a large wall; Small (20 × 20 in) suits a narrower space.
Is it legal to print Black Marble?
Yes. The image was made by NASA's Earth Observatory from data collected by the Suomi NPP satellite. NASA material is not protected by copyright in the United States unless noted, so it can be printed and sold. A print does not imply NASA endorsement, and NASA's logos and insignia are not covered.
