Johnson Space Center, Houston August 22, 2005 Space Station
Visit Inspires Astronaut's Passion for Photography For
centuries, exotic spaces from exotic places have captured the
hearts of many photographers, both professional and amateur. For
Expedition 10 International Space Station Commander Leroy Chiao,
it was something out of this world -- his extraordinary view 230
miles above the Earth -- that inspired him to capture thousands
of majestic images from space. NASA is featuring some of his
personal favorites on the Internet. "One of the highlights of my
time on orbit was to look out the window at the Earth and snap
photos," Chiao said. He returned in April from his long-duration
spaceflight. As part of his duties, Chiao captured photos and
video of Earth based on suggestions made by a team of scientists
before the mission began. The scientists identified photo
opportunities that aligned with the Station's daily orbit that
included meteorological and, atmospheric phenomena,
geographical, manmade and natural