Russia launched the first satellite, Sputnik, in 1957. As modern science expands and evolves, so too does its investigation of the cosmos-including thousands of satellites that are now orbiting the Earth. From satellite launches and manned missions to stepping on the moon and planning a visit to mars, our obsession with space exploration seems to only grow. Our fascination with space and the worlds beyond our own comes from a deep-seated human desire to better understand our place in the universe. Part of what made the Category 5 storm so devastating was it’s speed: Hurricane Dorian spent three days over the Bahamas, ratcheting up its death toll and damages. 2, 2019, was captured by NASA astronaut Christina Koch during a flyover more than 200 miles from Earth.

This image of Hurricane Dorian, also from Sept. While the photo looks close enough to touch, the satellite that took this photo is actually orbiting 1 million miles away. The camera aboard the Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR) satellite caught the dark side of the moon, a part that is never visible from Earth, in this perfect moment.

This 2015 animation still shows the moon crossing the Earth.

View of space station from earth