Earth shows its true colors

November 21, 2007
Rosetta captured new pictures of Earth on Nov. 13 during a swing-by of our planet, and on Nov. 15 as Rosetta left on its way to the outer Solar System, after a swing-by.

After its closest approach to Earth, Rosetta looked back and took a number of images using the OSIRIS Narrow Angle Camera (NAC).

The image to the right was acquired Nov. 15 at 3:30 CET. The image is a color composite of the NAC orange, green, and blue filters. At the bottom of the image, the continent of Australia can be seen clearly.

During the swing-by, the OSIRIS also observed Earth’s night-side. The image to the left shows a simulated view of Earth as seen from the position of Rosetta, just before the spacecraft’s closest approach to Earth. It was acquired Nov. 13 at 20:30 CET using the Wide Angle Camera (WAC) with a red filter.

The picture to the right is another image of Earth’s night-side. The picture was taken with the OSRIS WAC. It is shown in false color to emphasize city lights seen at night. The image was taken Nov. 13 at 20:30 using a red filter.