Golden sunglint highlights Lake Balkhash in this May 31, 2016, photo taken from the International Space Station. The large lake in Kazakhstan is one of the largest lakes in Asia and is the 15th largest lake in the world.
Since the space station became operational in November 2000, crew members have produced hundreds of thousands of images of the land, oceans, and atmosphere of Earth, and even of the Moon through Crew Earth Observations. Their photographs of Earth record how the planet changes over time due to human activity and natural events. This allows scientists to monitor disasters and direct response on the ground and study a number of phenomena, from the movement of glaciers to urban wildlife.
In addition, other activity aboard the space station helps inform long-duration missions like Artemis and future human expeditions to Mars.
Image credit: NASA/Tim Kopra
2016年5月31日拍摄的这张照片中，阳光在哈萨克斯坦的巴尔喀什湖上泛起金色光斑，画面由国际空间站上的宇航员拍摄。巴尔喀什湖是亚洲最大的湖泊之一，也是世界第十五大湖。
自2000年11月国际空间站投入运行以来，宇航员们通过地球观测任务（Crew Earth Observations）拍摄了数十万张关于地球陆地、海洋、大气，甚至月球的照片。这些影像记录了地球因人类活动与自然事件而发生的变化，帮助科学家监测灾害、指导地面应对，并研究包括冰川移动、城市野生动物等在内的多种现象。
此外，空间站上的其他科学活动也为阿尔忒弥斯任务以及未来人类火星远征等长期飞行计划提供了重要信息。
图片来源: NASA/Tim Kopra
