The world’s first-ever 4k livestream from space is enabling people to experience the same breath-taking views as astronauts.
Space travel is something that very few people are lucky enough to do - and the astronauts that do have returned with incredible stories.
In fact, many come back detailing a particular phenomenon that they experienced while above the Earth’s atmosphere.
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It is now referred to by scientists as the ‘overview effect’, which is a cognitive shift that some astronauts report to have experienced while viewing Earth from space.
It’s said to cause an overwhelming appreciation and connection to other people and to Earth as a whole and can change the observer’s own value system.
It’s an effect that is known to make worldly worries seem insignificant and displays Earth as one united planet.
One astronaut who experienced this is Ron Garan and talking to Big Think, he said: “When I looked out the window of the International Space Station, I saw the paparazzi-like flashes of lightning storms, I saw dancing curtains of auroras that seemed so close it was as if we could reach out and touch them. And I saw the unbelievable thinness of our planet's atmosphere.
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“In that moment, I was hit with the sobering realization that that paper-thin layer keeps every living thing on our planet alive.
“I saw an iridescent biosphere teeming with life, I didn't see the economy. But since our human-made systems treat everything, including the very life-support systems of our planet, as the wholly owned subsidiary of the global economy, it's obvious from the vantage point of space that we're living a lie.”
Now, people all over the world will be able to catch a glimpse of what Ron and other astronauts experienced with the world’s first 4k livestream all the way from space.
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This is made possible by the live footage captured from the space video streaming app Sen, which broadcasts video of Earth from the International Space Station.
Charles Black, Founder and CEO of Sen, commented: "This mission really is for all humanity and we hope our livestream will be a valuable application that empowers everyone with real-time information, and that it will inspire people.”
In its press release, Sen explained: “Sen hopes its 4K livestream of Earth will be accessed over time by billions of people, empowering everyone with live views of our planet to inform, educate, inspire and benefit humanity.”