United Kingdom and France

ESA astronaut Tim Peake took this image from the International Space Station during his six-month Principia mission. He commented: "I recognise that place!"

Professional photographer Max Alexander has known Tim Peake from before his launch into space and gave Tim photography tips during his mission. Max comments: "Another spectacular night time photograph, capturing London and the United Kingdom on the left, with Paris and France on the right. The airglow hugging the Earth clearly shows how thin our planet’s atmosphere is. To my mind, communicating the atmosphere’s fragility is one of the most important and powerful things an astronaut can do."

Follow Tim Peake via timpeake.esa.int