These stunning photographs may look like alien planets, but they are actually satellite images of planet Earth. Commercial satellite company DigitalGlobe recently released the images as a way of highlighting the incredible detail of their imagery – the highest-resolution commercial satellite imagery in the world. Some of the images – taken above Afghanistan, Algeria, Peru, Russia and the United States – look more like abstract works by Mondrian than segments of the globe. DigitalGlobe, based in Westminster, Colo., launched its first satellite in 1999 and currently has four in operation. Here: Trementina, New Mexico. (Photo by DigitalGlobe/Caters News)

Shortlisted: Pooyan Shadpoor, Houcheraghi. While walking along the shore of Larak, Iran – an island in the Persian Gulf – Shadpoor came across this luminous scene. The “magical lights of (the) plankton ... enchanted me so that I snapped the shot”, he writes. (Photo by Pooyan Shadpoor/2016 EPOTY)

Actress Julia Rose and American professional boxer Jake Paul leave little to imagination while frolicking in waterfall pool on Hawaii holiday in the last decade of November 2022. The couple are currently enjoying a mini-break in the US following Paul's win over Anderson Silva at the end of last month. (Photo by Instagram)

US actress, model and transgender activist Leyna Bloom poses during a photocall for the film “Port Authority” at the 72nd edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, on May 19, 2019. (Photo by Stephane Mahe/Reuters)

American actress, singer and model Zoe Kravitz is spotted out and about with a friend in New York City on October 6, 2020. The 31 year old “Batman” star carried a large tote bag and wore a blue tank top, black trousers, and matching flats. (Photo by TheImageDirect.com)

Revellers react in a water fight during Songkran Festival celebrations, in Hong Kong, China on April 9, 2023. (Photo by Lam Yik/Reuters)

A general view of atmosphere at the annual VOLT Festival in Sopron, 208 kms west of Budapest, Hungary on August 16, 2016. (Photo by Rockstar Photographers)

Arabian Saluki dogs chase a lure during a race at the Mazayin Dhafra Camel Festival in the desert near the city of Madinat Zayed, 150 kms west of Abu Dhabi, on December 26, 2017. The festival, which attracts participants from around the Gulf region, includes a camel beauty contest, a display of UAE handcrafts and other activities aimed at promoting the country's folklore. (Photo by Karim Sahib/AFP Photo)