Thomas Pesquet
Astronaut Thomas Pesquet reveals the challenges of photographing Earth from space, the psychological importance of being able to see our planet out the window and how he selected the photos for his new book, The Earth in Our Hands: Photos from the International Space Station
Flipping through his new book of more than 200 photographs of Earth, or if you are determined, the more than 245,000 images he took during his second mission aboard the International Space Station (ISS), you get the sense that Thomas Pesquet thoroughly captured the planet. In The Earth in Our Hands: Photos from the International Space Station, Pesquet curates his favourite views of our home world, showcasing its varied landscapes of both natural and human-made features. With a familiarity that only an astronaut can gain while looking down at Earth for hundreds of days, Pesquet not only conveys the beauty of Earth, but its fragility and the toll climate change has had on our environment.
But as complete a portrait of Earth as Pesquet was able to capture, there was one target that, try as he might, escaped his camera. “Machu Picchu was one I always wanted to take but never managed,” Pesquet says, referring to the remains of the 15th-century Inca citadel in southern Peru. “I don’t think there are many pictures of Machu Picchu because it is really small, the environment is very green and there are always clouds around, so you have to be really lucky and really good with the long lenses to get Machu Picchu. Maybe next time.”
What would you say separates The Earth in Our Hands from other astronauts’ collections of Earth photography, such as Terry Virts’ View from Above or Don Pettit’s Spaceborne?
I’m familiar with their work, especially Don Pettit’s; Don is the one who actually re-invented space photography, almost. Their books were an inspiration. For some of my shots, I started from what Don was doing and then I tried to give it a personal take. I think the biggest difference is probably night pictures. Those other guys did some night pictures, but mostly shot in the day, I think. I did a lot of night pictures, which I really enjoyed, starting from time lapses and extracting some really nice frames. I think my book may have more night pictures.
Also, one thi
