Totally off-topic this... We've all seen images of the ISS with the earth in the background, but what; at risk of asking a silly question, is taking the picture of the ISS itself? I don't get it...
Ah and here I was hoping for a good conspiracy theory. "The ISS is not actually up there, it is a prop build in a hangar in Area 51 and little green man take those pictures "
You could ask the same question with the moon landing long ago... It all was going so smooth and picture perfect it almost looked like a movie... :) >
Hmm I never really thought so. As for the pictures, probably taken by docking or disembarking spacecraft.
Thanks for the info, I was really getting at images of the ISS taken from some distance away with earth in the background, so not with on-board cameras
Well, it might be the start of one. The thing is this. When space shuttles were still in operation, that would have accounted for the far-away-images of the ISS with the earth in the background (when they were going to dock with it), because what else could have taken them?
I've always wondered about the moon landing - for instance, why didn't cameras on the lander film the moon approach much further away or earlier on?
My idea about the moon landing is that the government took it not for granted they would succeed. To be sure they could at least broadcast a success landing they prepared all images and video's in advance. Even as it seems the real mission has been successful they still had to use the fake material. Remember that a successful landing and then potential even the astronauts returning alive return was crucial for the government regarding the space-race with Russia and the many many dollars spend in those decades and decades to come. If we can't make it we fake it approach... If it was gone wrong at some point to early in the real mission they would have i think show a faked failed return into earths atmosphere as the mission would still be successful, being on the moon first before Russians had reached it.
I agree, this is the only other way that such images of the ISS could be taken - and now that the space shuttle no longer operates, the only way.
Soyuz shuttles on the space station also people still go up and down every 6 months or less. The american space shuttle wasn't the only way of getting people into space.
Completely forgot about Soyuz, that and other satellites further out must be how they're taken. I suppose that's the mystery solved
If your looking for high Rez pics of the ISS, I'll do a drive by. You never know I could get an interesting picture of someone with a very shocked look on their face!