LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online)  - Posted by James Drake on the Planet Earth website, Drake received the photo from the Russian Federal Space Agency's Research Center for Earth Operative Monitoring, whom manages the Elektro-L No. 1 spacecraft, after giving interest in animating and publishing the photo.

"In total I have an archive of 1,200 high-resolution images," Drake said.

Elektro-L No. 1 scans the Earth in both visible and infrared wavelengths that observe what naturally happens on the surface of the planet. When different wavelengths of light are combined, the planets features and colors are brought out spectacularly.

"When I see these images, I perceive the planet we live on as incredibly beautiful, interconnected and alive," Drake said. "They show the Earth for what it is, a spinning orb of metal and rock with a thin surface layer of unimaginable complexity. The fluid water and air that cover our planet are filled with intricate sel-replicating fractal patterns called life. What is happening on this planet is absolutely extraordinary!"

The photo is a reminder of how humanity is very much connected to the cosmos in space. Elektro-L No. 1 was launched on January 20, 2011, and is part of the Russian Federal Space Agency's brand new group of meteorological satellites. There are some similarities between Elektro-L's image and NASA's famous "Blue Marble" photo of Earth, which was recently updated by NASA's newest satellite, Suomi NPP, which was launched on October 28, 2011.

"Just think about it, the atoms in your body and everything on Earth were formed in the hearts of supergiant stars, cast out in gigantic supernovae explosions, and condensed down into a small sphere orbiting a star," Drake said. "To see the Earth when knowing that is to discover yourself as a cell of a much greater being. You are an integral component of a planetary consciousness that is traveling through a vast and beautiful cosmos."

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