Cities from Space - Tokyo, Japan

Today we head to Japan for a look at Tokyo:

Image from NASA's The Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth

And as a bonus here are Kobe-Osaka, Japan:

The Kobe-Osaka area (looking a little bit like a Cylon Raider) and Tokyo reveal yet another style of street lighting - mercury vapor. The blueish-green mercury vapor lights have been banned in the U.S. and will soon be banned in the EU too. Even though some people apparently love them they are big light polluters and inefficient sources of light, making them a great source of light to be phased out.

The photo of Tokyo was taken February 5, 2008 and Kobe-Osaka January 26, 2008. Both were by the Expedition 16 crew of the International Space Station.

Next up, Taipei, Taiwan.