Voluminous Venice

ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet is spending six months on the International Space Station as part of his second mission Alpha. In his free time, like many astronauts, he enjoys looking out of the Cupola windows at Earth. This collage is made up of 58 images digitally mapped, rotated and assembled to provide a highly detailed overview of Venice, Italy, and the Venetian Lagoon.

Thomas shared this image on his social channels with the caption: "Venice. Italy’s floating city and one of the world’s most iconic. Most of us know it for its watery canals, bridges and melodic gondoliers but the unsung heroes of Venice are actually thick wooden planks. That's not an insult by the way, when the city was established, stakes of alder wood from nearby forests were driven deep into the lagoon to support construction. Salt water and a lack of air hardened and protected this wood from damage and rot and most of the city's buildings still rely on these clever historic foundations. Now one of the biggest challenges Venice faces (aside from climate change, which is huge) is human movement stirring up the water. Earlier this month, a ban on large vessels came into force, stopping cruise ships from entering the lagoon and hopefully helping to sustain this UNESCO site for the future."

The International Space Station flies at roughly 400 km altitude so Thomas uses the longest lenses available on board.