Sultan Al Neyadi shares spectacular image of Damascus from space

UAE astronaut's picture shows historic Syrian city from Earth's orbit

Sultan Al Neyadi captured a detailed photo of Damascus from the International Space Station. Sultan Al Neyadi

UAE astronaut Sultan Al Neyadi has captured another stunning of an Arab city from space.

Dr Al Neyadi shared a detailed image of Damascus on X, formerly known as Twitter, that shows the street layout and the landscape surrounding the Syrian city.

“Here is a view I clicked of Damascus, the oldest continuously inhabited capital in human history with its seven gates and home to the Umayyad Mosque, Barada River, and Mount Qasioun,” he said in the social media post.

“Greetings to Syria and its wonderful people.”

Dr Al Neyadi has been using his camera skills to capture stunning images of Arab countries from Earth's orbit, ranging from wadis, or dry valleys, in Yemen and sand dunes in Saudi Arabia, to rugged mountains in Oman.

On Saturday, he shared photos from space of the wildfires in Greece and Turkey.

The following day, he posted an image of an active volcano. He captured an aerial view of the tiny Taal volcano, one of the most active in the Philippines

As part of their preparation for going on a space mission, astronauts are given special training on how to use professional camera equipment so they can document different locations.

The ISS has a panoramic observatory called the Cupola to capture detailed pictures as the station circles around the planet 16 times each day.

Taking photos from above also helps governments with urban planning and agricultural initiatives.