Astronaut's Stunning Photographs Of Earth From Space Are Like Nothing You've Ever Seen

On March 27, astronaut Scott Kelly embarked on a once-in-a-lifetime journey: a historic mission dubbed, “A Year In Space.”

Kelly, along with Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko, was sent to live aboard the International Space Station for a total of 522 days as part of NASA’s research on the long-term effects of zero-gravity.

With the mission, NASA hopes to better understand conditions in space so we can, someday, develop permanent extraterrestrial communities.

Kelly’s job is rigorous and, predictably, rather lonely. But the payoff — to spend a year in outer space watching the Earth from afar — is immense and, by all accounts, absolutely worth it.

The brave astronaut has spent his free time documenting the beauty of our Earth from his unparalleled vantage point aboard the ISS, and his stunning photographs will give you a renewed appreciation for this place we call home.

Take a look below.

Kelly updates his social media accounts daily with photographs taken from the ISS.

His vantage point allows him to see the world in ways most of us never will.

He calls it #EarthArt (and it’s easy to see why).

Because the ISS travels faster than the Earth’s orbit (approximately 17,000 mph)…

Kelly and the other astronauts aboard the ISS witness about 15 sunrises and sunsets per day (every 92 minutes).

According to the NASA alum, “tropical waters and deserts look pretty cool” from space.

But as far as we’re concerned, all of it looks cool.

He saw Hurricane Patricia forming before we even knew it was coming…

And he watches the Northern Lights as they dance across the Earth.

Though living in space is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity (and undeniably beautiful)...

Kelly insists “Earth is better.”

Seeing his gorgeous #EarthArt, we can’t say we disagree.

Follow Scott Kelly on Instagram and Twitter for daily updates on his year in space.