As soon as the sun goes down, cities around the world begin to light up so brightly that the dazzling display can be viewed from space. As far as we know, Earth is the only planet in the universe that lights up at night. Now Lights of Mankind: The Earth at Night as Seen From Space by L. Douglas Keeney, shares the awe-inspiring views in more than 250 incredible photographs taken by astronauts on the International Space Station. From Paris to Milan, New York City to San Francisco, Rio de Janeiro to Rome, this stunning illustrated book documents the entire globe at night.
Lights of Mankind: The Earth at Night as Seen From Space by L. Douglas Keeney.
Featuring over 100 world cities and 70-plus regional panoramic images, it shows in striking detail the interplay of geography, man, and science. Astronauts Clay Anderson, Sandra Mangus, Don Pettit, Mario Runco Jr., and Doug Wheelock, eloquently share their own perspectives of Earth at night, with eyewitness testimony. As Wheelock describes, “Earth presents itself as this raging explosion of light in a black, empty sea.”
At night our cities glow in patterns of light that speak volumes about how we inhabit this planet. For example, democratic countries shine more brightly than totalitarian ones, and cities are almost always near bodies of water.
Keeney’s picks for the “Seven Wonders of the Nighttime World” show powerful images of population centers around the globe in all their glittering glory, showing us that by day or by night, planet earth is the superstar of our solar system. ■
