Don't miss 20 spectacular images of India from space

New Delhi: India is a beautiful country with vast topography and terrain. This magnificent country is best seen from space. Only then one can know the real essence of India's land mass and its natural beauty. Here are 20 pictures taken from space, (International Space Station) which outline this glorious country. 1. Kakinada: This picture was clicked by Chris Hadfield. He tweeted from ISS on January 15, 2013- Wildlife sanctuary on the Bay of Bengal, Kakinada, India. River silt makes a rich delta. This picture is of Coringa wildlife sanctuary situated in Andhra Pradesh. It is the second largest surviving mangrove forests in India. 2. Kanpur: This is a snapshot of Kanpur taken by Italian astronaut Paolo Angelo Nespol on Expedition 26/27 (launched by European Space Agency). Kanpur is one of the largest industrial cities of Uttar Pradesh. The Ganga river can be seen in the picture. 3. Mumbai: Mumbai is photographed from space by a crew member of Expedition 14 on board International Space station. The capital city of Mahrashtra, it is the fourth most populous city in the world. It is the commercial and entertainment capital of India. 4. Palk Strait: This is a strait between India and Sri Lanka. The Strait is 33 to 50 miles. It was photographed by Soichi Noguchi, Japanese Astronaut aboard International Space Station on Expedition 22/23. According to Ramayan this was built by Lord Ram and his Vanar Sena to rescue Sita, from the Asura king Ravana. Now India is in dilemma whether to preserve or destroy it for shipping purposes. 5. Saser Muztagh: Nasa's website said that Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko's snap from the International Space Station, 230 miles above Earth, showed Everest lightly dusted with snow, but this later turned out to be Saser Muztagh (in the middle), in the Karakoram Range of the Kashmir region of India. The view is in midafternoon light looking northeastward. 6. Southern India: This image was taken by Soichi Noguchi, Japanese Astronaut aboard International Space Station on Expedition 22/23. The image shows the clouds rising at the Western Ghats, which is the onset of monsoon. 7. Taj Mahal: This picture was taken by Soichi Noguchi, Japanese Astronaut aboard International Space Station on Expedition 22/23. The white square in the middle houses the Taj and courtyards flanking it, and the gardens in front. 8. Bisalpur Reservoir: Chris Hadfield tweeted from International Space Station on January 06 2013; “India, through a hole in the clouds. I'm not sure where – does anyone recognize the exact location?” with this picture.The dam is on the Banas river in Tonk district, Rajasthan. 9. Lake Sambhar: The Lake Sambar was photographed from space by a crew member aboard International Space Station on November 24, 2004. Lake Sambhar, is India's largest Inland salt lake in the city of Jaipur. On the eastern end, the lake is divided by a 5-km long dam made of stone. East of the dam are salt evaporation ponds where salt has been farmed for a thousand years. 10. Crepuscular Rays near India: Crepuscular rays near India are featured in this image was photographed by an Expedition 29 crew member on the International Space Station. Atmospheric scientists refer to this phenomenon as “crepuscular rays”, referring to the typical observation times of either sunrise or sunset. Shadowed areas bounding the rays are formed by obstructions in the solar (or lunar) illumination pathway such as clouds or mountain tops; however this alone is not sufficient to create the phenomenon. The sun was setting to the west on the Indian subcontinent at the time the image was taken, and cumulonimbus cloud towers provide the shadowing obstructions. The rays are being projected onto a layer of haze below the cloud towers. The image clearly illustrates the true parallel nature of the crepuscular rays. 11. Arabian Sea: Chris Hadfield tweeted from International Space Station on January18, 2013; “Huge swirls in the sea off of Mumbai” with this picture. 12. Patna: This photo was taken on March 23, 2011 by Italian Astronaut Paolo Angelo Nespoli aboard International Space Station on Expedition 26/27 (launched by European Space Agency). It is the capital city of Bihar. The ancient city Patliputra was the capital of Magadha Empire and was the seat of learning and fine arts. 13. Kolkata: This photo was taken on May 15, 2011 by Italian Astronaut, Paolo Angelo Nespoli aboard International Space Station on Expedition 26/27 (launched by European Space Agency). Kolkata is the capital of West Bengal. Located on Hooghly river, the port of Kolkata is India's oldest operating port. 14. Delhi: This photo was taken on April 25, 2011 by Italian Astronaut Paolo Angelo Nespoli aboard International Space Station on Expedition 26/27 (launched by European Space Agency). The capital of India, it is the political and economic centre. It is the second most populous city of the world. 15. Dhaulagiri: Although it looks like a view from a high-altitude airplane, the photograph was taken out of the window of the Space Station from an orbital altitude of 200 nautical miles (370 km). This image taken by the Expedition 1 crew from the International Space Station using a high-magnification lens. The view is southeastward across the southern Tibetan Plateau of China, to the Dhaulagiri Range of the Himalayas. 16. Hyderabad: Chris Hadfield tweeted from International Space Station on February 22, 2013;“Hyderabad, India, clear in the night. Home to the world's largest movie studio” with this picture. 17. Kolkata: Chris Hadfield tweeted from International Space Station on February 1, 2013;“Kolkata, India – at night, definitely not the ‘Black Hole of Calcutta' of legend. After many passes, a clear view” with this picture.18. Bangalore: This picture was taken by Russian cosmonaut, Anatoli Ivanishin on April 15, 2012 on Expedition 29/30 mission. The city of Bangalore resembles a golden jewel embedded with emeralds at night. 19. Rewari: This photo was taken on April 25, 2011 by Italian Astronaut Paolo Angelo Nespoli aboard International Space Station on Expedition 26/27 (launched by European Space Agency). This photo is enhanced and processed of course and the colour appearance is a matter of taste. Rewari is a city and a municipal council in Rewari district in Haryana. Rewari is around 82 km from Delhi. 20. India Pakistan Border seen from Space: Snaking for hundreds of miles across the earth's surface, this spectacular picture shows one of the planet's land borders like never before, the border between India and Pakistan. The Indian government sanctioned a move to erect floodlights along the terrain separating India and Pakistan starting from Gujarat sector in 2003 to prevent smuggling and arms trafficking. The spectacular image showing the floodlit border was taken by Expedition 28 International Space Station Crew on August 21, 2011.