Which country borders are visible from space?












25















You can see the borders of North Korea with China and South Korea at night from the ISS since unlike their neighbours, they have almost no light. That got me thinking, which other country borders (of directly adjacent countries with no large bodies of water in between) are visible from space?










share|improve this question


















  • 15





    LOL, +1 for your last sentence, otherwise I was going to post some islands.

    – Organic Marble
    yesterday






  • 7





    The former inner German border may have been visible at night from orbit. The control strip of this border was illuminated at night by high-intensity floodlights. But luckily this about 30 years ago.

    – Uwe
    yesterday






  • 2





    this is why we need a puzzler tag

    – uhoh
    yesterday






  • 1





    Your question got me thinking: within the Schengen space*, I've rarely seen a border between two countries while standing directly on it! (*this qualifies the comment as space exploration right?)

    – Pavel
    5 hours ago
















25















You can see the borders of North Korea with China and South Korea at night from the ISS since unlike their neighbours, they have almost no light. That got me thinking, which other country borders (of directly adjacent countries with no large bodies of water in between) are visible from space?










share|improve this question


















  • 15





    LOL, +1 for your last sentence, otherwise I was going to post some islands.

    – Organic Marble
    yesterday






  • 7





    The former inner German border may have been visible at night from orbit. The control strip of this border was illuminated at night by high-intensity floodlights. But luckily this about 30 years ago.

    – Uwe
    yesterday






  • 2





    this is why we need a puzzler tag

    – uhoh
    yesterday






  • 1





    Your question got me thinking: within the Schengen space*, I've rarely seen a border between two countries while standing directly on it! (*this qualifies the comment as space exploration right?)

    – Pavel
    5 hours ago














25












25








25


4






You can see the borders of North Korea with China and South Korea at night from the ISS since unlike their neighbours, they have almost no light. That got me thinking, which other country borders (of directly adjacent countries with no large bodies of water in between) are visible from space?










share|improve this question














You can see the borders of North Korea with China and South Korea at night from the ISS since unlike their neighbours, they have almost no light. That got me thinking, which other country borders (of directly adjacent countries with no large bodies of water in between) are visible from space?







iss earth international-politics






share|improve this question













share|improve this question











share|improve this question




share|improve this question










asked yesterday









DarkDustDarkDust

6,32922653




6,32922653








  • 15





    LOL, +1 for your last sentence, otherwise I was going to post some islands.

    – Organic Marble
    yesterday






  • 7





    The former inner German border may have been visible at night from orbit. The control strip of this border was illuminated at night by high-intensity floodlights. But luckily this about 30 years ago.

    – Uwe
    yesterday






  • 2





    this is why we need a puzzler tag

    – uhoh
    yesterday






  • 1





    Your question got me thinking: within the Schengen space*, I've rarely seen a border between two countries while standing directly on it! (*this qualifies the comment as space exploration right?)

    – Pavel
    5 hours ago














  • 15





    LOL, +1 for your last sentence, otherwise I was going to post some islands.

    – Organic Marble
    yesterday






  • 7





    The former inner German border may have been visible at night from orbit. The control strip of this border was illuminated at night by high-intensity floodlights. But luckily this about 30 years ago.

    – Uwe
    yesterday






  • 2





    this is why we need a puzzler tag

    – uhoh
    yesterday






  • 1





    Your question got me thinking: within the Schengen space*, I've rarely seen a border between two countries while standing directly on it! (*this qualifies the comment as space exploration right?)

    – Pavel
    5 hours ago








15




15





LOL, +1 for your last sentence, otherwise I was going to post some islands.

– Organic Marble
yesterday





LOL, +1 for your last sentence, otherwise I was going to post some islands.

– Organic Marble
yesterday




7




7





The former inner German border may have been visible at night from orbit. The control strip of this border was illuminated at night by high-intensity floodlights. But luckily this about 30 years ago.

– Uwe
yesterday





The former inner German border may have been visible at night from orbit. The control strip of this border was illuminated at night by high-intensity floodlights. But luckily this about 30 years ago.

– Uwe
yesterday




2




2





this is why we need a puzzler tag

– uhoh
yesterday





this is why we need a puzzler tag

– uhoh
yesterday




1




1





Your question got me thinking: within the Schengen space*, I've rarely seen a border between two countries while standing directly on it! (*this qualifies the comment as space exploration right?)

– Pavel
5 hours ago





Your question got me thinking: within the Schengen space*, I've rarely seen a border between two countries while standing directly on it! (*this qualifies the comment as space exploration right?)

– Pavel
5 hours ago










8 Answers
8






active

oldest

votes


















37














The border between India and Pakistan is one of the heavily guarded and lit stretch in the world, so much that it can be seen from space at night. It covers an immense distance from the Arabian Sea to the Himalayan foothills.



Here is how it looks from ISS. India-Pakistan Border at Night from NASA Earth Observatory




The winding border between Pakistan and India is lit by security lights that have a distinct orange tone. The port city of Karachi is the bright cluster of lights facing the Arabian Sea. For scale, the distance from Karachi to the foothills of the Himalaya Mountains is 1,160 kilometers (720 miles)




Indo-Pak Border



Another interesting historical divide that can be seen even today is the effect of the Berlin wall. Despite the reunification, the remnants can be still seen today. Berlin at Night by ESA astronaut André Kuipers. A zoomed-in version of the original image from the Washington Post is shown below.




The former division between East and West Berlin can be seen. The yellow
lights correspond to East Berlin and the greener tones show West Berlin.




Berlin at night






share|improve this answer





















  • 2





    That Indian-Pakistan border image is exactly the kind of image I was hoping to see. Thanks!

    – DarkDust
    7 hours ago











  • You're welcome. And Thanks for accepting the answer.

    – karthikeyan
    7 hours ago






  • 1





    @josh it is because of the difference in the choice of the street light colours.

    – karthikeyan
    5 hours ago






  • 4





    If you want to improve on your answer, please add that the difference in color is due to yellow/orange sodium lamps in Easy Berlin and white-green mercury lamps in West Berlin.

    – winny
    4 hours ago






  • 1





    @winny Easy Berlin? I thought that side was "hard" Berlin?

    – Baldrickk
    23 mins ago



















15














According to https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/uscanada-border-slash, the US-Canada border slash through the trees can be seen from space.



US-Canada border area as seen from space






share|improve this answer










New contributor




emory is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
















  • 1





    Thanks, I've added one of the images to your answer. That's one of the things I was hoping to see!

    – DarkDust
    7 hours ago





















7














You did not specify if you are thinking of any border or only an anthropogenic one.



Anthropogenic (they will likely be visible due to different levels of economic development):




  1. Egypt and Israel (different level of development visible on both sides)


  2. Haiti and Dominican Republic (less vegetation in Haiti)



Natural ones (rivers and mountain ranges can be seen from space):




  1. Mexico and USA (Rio Grande)


  2. Germany and France (Rhine)


  3. Germany and Poland (Oder)







share|improve this answer































    6














    While LED lighting is taking over (and is likely CW), plenty of outdoor street lights in cities and highways still use high pressure mercury and sodium discharge lamps running on mains AC voltage. They don't rectify and so will produce two pulses per cycle of AC.



    Therefore any technique that can chop up time, a rolling shutter effect or simple aliasing in time from a video device, or even a spinning piece of paper with slits on the end of a space-rated paperclip would be able to distinguish a 50Hz country from a 60Hz country.



    So Suriname|French Guyana or Argentena+Chile+Uraguay+Paraguay+Boliva|north thereof or Saudi Arabia|Neighbors or perhaps Liberia|Neighbors (needs better data)



    For even more fun, just have a look within Japan, Tokyo prefecture and north is 50 Hz, and south of it is 60 Hz!



    enter image description here



    Source





    Two screen shots from the YouTube video 50 Hz vs 60 Hz vs 400 hz A.C. Hum Sound Comparsion converted into GIF:



    enter image description here



    click/open separately to view full size






    share|improve this answer





















    • 3





      The street lights on the two sides of Cypress are different colors. It’s really visible when flying at night, so perhaps is visible from space too.

      – Bob Jacobsen
      yesterday






    • 2





      @BobJacobsen The island is Cyprus; a cypress is a coniferous tree.

      – David Richerby
      21 hours ago






    • 1





      @DavidRicherby when capitalized as a proper noun, it's a semiconductor manufacturer

      – uhoh
      17 hours ago





















    4














    Belgium, sort of:



    enter image description here



    Belgium has road lighting on almost all of its roads. The neighboring countries don't. The southern Netherlands, the Ruhrgebiet and the Lille area are densely populated so the distinction is less clear here.






    share|improve this answer
























    • And of course the SE of Belgium would have to be disregarded here as the lighting there is no different from that in neighbouring areas of Germany or France.

      – jwenting
      8 hours ago



















    4














    A part of the border between Austria, Switzerland and Germany may be seen from orbit.



    For the biggest part of the Lake Constance, the Upper Lake, the location of the borders within the water is not defined. Therefore the lake itself is the border, a very wide one, easily to be seen from orbit at day and night.



    Within a smaller part, the Lower Lake, the border within the water is defined.



    See Wikipedia for International borders of Lake Constance or this chart of the Bodensee.



    Another part of the border between France and Germany is the river Rhein between the towns Basel and Karlsruhe, see this chart.






    share|improve this answer





















    • 3





      Are you saying that... lightness races in orbit...?

      – Lightness Races in Orbit
      16 hours ago



















    1














    Looking at this high resolution image of the Earth at night, here are a few borders I could find.



    US/ Mexico can be partially seen, particularly in the Western US.
    enter image description here



    Guatamala and its southern neighbors of Honduras/ El Salvador
    enter image description here



    India/ Pakistan is VERY noticeable.



    enter image description here



    North/ South Korea is also VERY obvious.



    enter image description here



    Italy seems pretty obvious, but it is probably because the northern end of the country isn't very habitable.



    enter image description here






    share|improve this answer































      1














      Another border which is visible due to the lack of light is the Haitian border with the Dominican Republic:



      Haiti at night



      The area highlighted on the left is Haiti, of which only Port Au Prince can be seen at night. The bright island on the right is Puerto Rico.





      share








      New contributor




      A Gibb is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.




















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        8 Answers
        8






        active

        oldest

        votes








        8 Answers
        8






        active

        oldest

        votes









        active

        oldest

        votes






        active

        oldest

        votes









        37














        The border between India and Pakistan is one of the heavily guarded and lit stretch in the world, so much that it can be seen from space at night. It covers an immense distance from the Arabian Sea to the Himalayan foothills.



        Here is how it looks from ISS. India-Pakistan Border at Night from NASA Earth Observatory




        The winding border between Pakistan and India is lit by security lights that have a distinct orange tone. The port city of Karachi is the bright cluster of lights facing the Arabian Sea. For scale, the distance from Karachi to the foothills of the Himalaya Mountains is 1,160 kilometers (720 miles)




        Indo-Pak Border



        Another interesting historical divide that can be seen even today is the effect of the Berlin wall. Despite the reunification, the remnants can be still seen today. Berlin at Night by ESA astronaut André Kuipers. A zoomed-in version of the original image from the Washington Post is shown below.




        The former division between East and West Berlin can be seen. The yellow
        lights correspond to East Berlin and the greener tones show West Berlin.




        Berlin at night






        share|improve this answer





















        • 2





          That Indian-Pakistan border image is exactly the kind of image I was hoping to see. Thanks!

          – DarkDust
          7 hours ago











        • You're welcome. And Thanks for accepting the answer.

          – karthikeyan
          7 hours ago






        • 1





          @josh it is because of the difference in the choice of the street light colours.

          – karthikeyan
          5 hours ago






        • 4





          If you want to improve on your answer, please add that the difference in color is due to yellow/orange sodium lamps in Easy Berlin and white-green mercury lamps in West Berlin.

          – winny
          4 hours ago






        • 1





          @winny Easy Berlin? I thought that side was "hard" Berlin?

          – Baldrickk
          23 mins ago
















        37














        The border between India and Pakistan is one of the heavily guarded and lit stretch in the world, so much that it can be seen from space at night. It covers an immense distance from the Arabian Sea to the Himalayan foothills.



        Here is how it looks from ISS. India-Pakistan Border at Night from NASA Earth Observatory




        The winding border between Pakistan and India is lit by security lights that have a distinct orange tone. The port city of Karachi is the bright cluster of lights facing the Arabian Sea. For scale, the distance from Karachi to the foothills of the Himalaya Mountains is 1,160 kilometers (720 miles)




        Indo-Pak Border



        Another interesting historical divide that can be seen even today is the effect of the Berlin wall. Despite the reunification, the remnants can be still seen today. Berlin at Night by ESA astronaut André Kuipers. A zoomed-in version of the original image from the Washington Post is shown below.




        The former division between East and West Berlin can be seen. The yellow
        lights correspond to East Berlin and the greener tones show West Berlin.




        Berlin at night






        share|improve this answer





















        • 2





          That Indian-Pakistan border image is exactly the kind of image I was hoping to see. Thanks!

          – DarkDust
          7 hours ago











        • You're welcome. And Thanks for accepting the answer.

          – karthikeyan
          7 hours ago






        • 1





          @josh it is because of the difference in the choice of the street light colours.

          – karthikeyan
          5 hours ago






        • 4





          If you want to improve on your answer, please add that the difference in color is due to yellow/orange sodium lamps in Easy Berlin and white-green mercury lamps in West Berlin.

          – winny
          4 hours ago






        • 1





          @winny Easy Berlin? I thought that side was "hard" Berlin?

          – Baldrickk
          23 mins ago














        37












        37








        37







        The border between India and Pakistan is one of the heavily guarded and lit stretch in the world, so much that it can be seen from space at night. It covers an immense distance from the Arabian Sea to the Himalayan foothills.



        Here is how it looks from ISS. India-Pakistan Border at Night from NASA Earth Observatory




        The winding border between Pakistan and India is lit by security lights that have a distinct orange tone. The port city of Karachi is the bright cluster of lights facing the Arabian Sea. For scale, the distance from Karachi to the foothills of the Himalaya Mountains is 1,160 kilometers (720 miles)




        Indo-Pak Border



        Another interesting historical divide that can be seen even today is the effect of the Berlin wall. Despite the reunification, the remnants can be still seen today. Berlin at Night by ESA astronaut André Kuipers. A zoomed-in version of the original image from the Washington Post is shown below.




        The former division between East and West Berlin can be seen. The yellow
        lights correspond to East Berlin and the greener tones show West Berlin.




        Berlin at night






        share|improve this answer















        The border between India and Pakistan is one of the heavily guarded and lit stretch in the world, so much that it can be seen from space at night. It covers an immense distance from the Arabian Sea to the Himalayan foothills.



        Here is how it looks from ISS. India-Pakistan Border at Night from NASA Earth Observatory




        The winding border between Pakistan and India is lit by security lights that have a distinct orange tone. The port city of Karachi is the bright cluster of lights facing the Arabian Sea. For scale, the distance from Karachi to the foothills of the Himalaya Mountains is 1,160 kilometers (720 miles)




        Indo-Pak Border



        Another interesting historical divide that can be seen even today is the effect of the Berlin wall. Despite the reunification, the remnants can be still seen today. Berlin at Night by ESA astronaut André Kuipers. A zoomed-in version of the original image from the Washington Post is shown below.




        The former division between East and West Berlin can be seen. The yellow
        lights correspond to East Berlin and the greener tones show West Berlin.




        Berlin at night







        share|improve this answer














        share|improve this answer



        share|improve this answer








        edited yesterday

























        answered yesterday









        karthikeyankarthikeyan

        1,6961025




        1,6961025








        • 2





          That Indian-Pakistan border image is exactly the kind of image I was hoping to see. Thanks!

          – DarkDust
          7 hours ago











        • You're welcome. And Thanks for accepting the answer.

          – karthikeyan
          7 hours ago






        • 1





          @josh it is because of the difference in the choice of the street light colours.

          – karthikeyan
          5 hours ago






        • 4





          If you want to improve on your answer, please add that the difference in color is due to yellow/orange sodium lamps in Easy Berlin and white-green mercury lamps in West Berlin.

          – winny
          4 hours ago






        • 1





          @winny Easy Berlin? I thought that side was "hard" Berlin?

          – Baldrickk
          23 mins ago














        • 2





          That Indian-Pakistan border image is exactly the kind of image I was hoping to see. Thanks!

          – DarkDust
          7 hours ago











        • You're welcome. And Thanks for accepting the answer.

          – karthikeyan
          7 hours ago






        • 1





          @josh it is because of the difference in the choice of the street light colours.

          – karthikeyan
          5 hours ago






        • 4





          If you want to improve on your answer, please add that the difference in color is due to yellow/orange sodium lamps in Easy Berlin and white-green mercury lamps in West Berlin.

          – winny
          4 hours ago






        • 1





          @winny Easy Berlin? I thought that side was "hard" Berlin?

          – Baldrickk
          23 mins ago








        2




        2





        That Indian-Pakistan border image is exactly the kind of image I was hoping to see. Thanks!

        – DarkDust
        7 hours ago





        That Indian-Pakistan border image is exactly the kind of image I was hoping to see. Thanks!

        – DarkDust
        7 hours ago













        You're welcome. And Thanks for accepting the answer.

        – karthikeyan
        7 hours ago





        You're welcome. And Thanks for accepting the answer.

        – karthikeyan
        7 hours ago




        1




        1





        @josh it is because of the difference in the choice of the street light colours.

        – karthikeyan
        5 hours ago





        @josh it is because of the difference in the choice of the street light colours.

        – karthikeyan
        5 hours ago




        4




        4





        If you want to improve on your answer, please add that the difference in color is due to yellow/orange sodium lamps in Easy Berlin and white-green mercury lamps in West Berlin.

        – winny
        4 hours ago





        If you want to improve on your answer, please add that the difference in color is due to yellow/orange sodium lamps in Easy Berlin and white-green mercury lamps in West Berlin.

        – winny
        4 hours ago




        1




        1





        @winny Easy Berlin? I thought that side was "hard" Berlin?

        – Baldrickk
        23 mins ago





        @winny Easy Berlin? I thought that side was "hard" Berlin?

        – Baldrickk
        23 mins ago











        15














        According to https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/uscanada-border-slash, the US-Canada border slash through the trees can be seen from space.



        US-Canada border area as seen from space






        share|improve this answer










        New contributor




        emory is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.
















        • 1





          Thanks, I've added one of the images to your answer. That's one of the things I was hoping to see!

          – DarkDust
          7 hours ago


















        15














        According to https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/uscanada-border-slash, the US-Canada border slash through the trees can be seen from space.



        US-Canada border area as seen from space






        share|improve this answer










        New contributor




        emory is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.
















        • 1





          Thanks, I've added one of the images to your answer. That's one of the things I was hoping to see!

          – DarkDust
          7 hours ago
















        15












        15








        15







        According to https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/uscanada-border-slash, the US-Canada border slash through the trees can be seen from space.



        US-Canada border area as seen from space






        share|improve this answer










        New contributor




        emory is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.










        According to https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/uscanada-border-slash, the US-Canada border slash through the trees can be seen from space.



        US-Canada border area as seen from space







        share|improve this answer










        New contributor




        emory is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.









        share|improve this answer



        share|improve this answer








        edited 7 hours ago









        DarkDust

        6,32922653




        6,32922653






        New contributor




        emory is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.









        answered 19 hours ago









        emoryemory

        25115




        25115




        New contributor




        emory is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.





        New contributor





        emory is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.






        emory is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.








        • 1





          Thanks, I've added one of the images to your answer. That's one of the things I was hoping to see!

          – DarkDust
          7 hours ago
















        • 1





          Thanks, I've added one of the images to your answer. That's one of the things I was hoping to see!

          – DarkDust
          7 hours ago










        1




        1





        Thanks, I've added one of the images to your answer. That's one of the things I was hoping to see!

        – DarkDust
        7 hours ago







        Thanks, I've added one of the images to your answer. That's one of the things I was hoping to see!

        – DarkDust
        7 hours ago













        7














        You did not specify if you are thinking of any border or only an anthropogenic one.



        Anthropogenic (they will likely be visible due to different levels of economic development):




        1. Egypt and Israel (different level of development visible on both sides)


        2. Haiti and Dominican Republic (less vegetation in Haiti)



        Natural ones (rivers and mountain ranges can be seen from space):




        1. Mexico and USA (Rio Grande)


        2. Germany and France (Rhine)


        3. Germany and Poland (Oder)







        share|improve this answer




























          7














          You did not specify if you are thinking of any border or only an anthropogenic one.



          Anthropogenic (they will likely be visible due to different levels of economic development):




          1. Egypt and Israel (different level of development visible on both sides)


          2. Haiti and Dominican Republic (less vegetation in Haiti)



          Natural ones (rivers and mountain ranges can be seen from space):




          1. Mexico and USA (Rio Grande)


          2. Germany and France (Rhine)


          3. Germany and Poland (Oder)







          share|improve this answer


























            7












            7








            7







            You did not specify if you are thinking of any border or only an anthropogenic one.



            Anthropogenic (they will likely be visible due to different levels of economic development):




            1. Egypt and Israel (different level of development visible on both sides)


            2. Haiti and Dominican Republic (less vegetation in Haiti)



            Natural ones (rivers and mountain ranges can be seen from space):




            1. Mexico and USA (Rio Grande)


            2. Germany and France (Rhine)


            3. Germany and Poland (Oder)







            share|improve this answer













            You did not specify if you are thinking of any border or only an anthropogenic one.



            Anthropogenic (they will likely be visible due to different levels of economic development):




            1. Egypt and Israel (different level of development visible on both sides)


            2. Haiti and Dominican Republic (less vegetation in Haiti)



            Natural ones (rivers and mountain ranges can be seen from space):




            1. Mexico and USA (Rio Grande)


            2. Germany and France (Rhine)


            3. Germany and Poland (Oder)








            share|improve this answer












            share|improve this answer



            share|improve this answer










            answered yesterday









            filofilo

            56048




            56048























                6














                While LED lighting is taking over (and is likely CW), plenty of outdoor street lights in cities and highways still use high pressure mercury and sodium discharge lamps running on mains AC voltage. They don't rectify and so will produce two pulses per cycle of AC.



                Therefore any technique that can chop up time, a rolling shutter effect or simple aliasing in time from a video device, or even a spinning piece of paper with slits on the end of a space-rated paperclip would be able to distinguish a 50Hz country from a 60Hz country.



                So Suriname|French Guyana or Argentena+Chile+Uraguay+Paraguay+Boliva|north thereof or Saudi Arabia|Neighbors or perhaps Liberia|Neighbors (needs better data)



                For even more fun, just have a look within Japan, Tokyo prefecture and north is 50 Hz, and south of it is 60 Hz!



                enter image description here



                Source





                Two screen shots from the YouTube video 50 Hz vs 60 Hz vs 400 hz A.C. Hum Sound Comparsion converted into GIF:



                enter image description here



                click/open separately to view full size






                share|improve this answer





















                • 3





                  The street lights on the two sides of Cypress are different colors. It’s really visible when flying at night, so perhaps is visible from space too.

                  – Bob Jacobsen
                  yesterday






                • 2





                  @BobJacobsen The island is Cyprus; a cypress is a coniferous tree.

                  – David Richerby
                  21 hours ago






                • 1





                  @DavidRicherby when capitalized as a proper noun, it's a semiconductor manufacturer

                  – uhoh
                  17 hours ago


















                6














                While LED lighting is taking over (and is likely CW), plenty of outdoor street lights in cities and highways still use high pressure mercury and sodium discharge lamps running on mains AC voltage. They don't rectify and so will produce two pulses per cycle of AC.



                Therefore any technique that can chop up time, a rolling shutter effect or simple aliasing in time from a video device, or even a spinning piece of paper with slits on the end of a space-rated paperclip would be able to distinguish a 50Hz country from a 60Hz country.



                So Suriname|French Guyana or Argentena+Chile+Uraguay+Paraguay+Boliva|north thereof or Saudi Arabia|Neighbors or perhaps Liberia|Neighbors (needs better data)



                For even more fun, just have a look within Japan, Tokyo prefecture and north is 50 Hz, and south of it is 60 Hz!



                enter image description here



                Source





                Two screen shots from the YouTube video 50 Hz vs 60 Hz vs 400 hz A.C. Hum Sound Comparsion converted into GIF:



                enter image description here



                click/open separately to view full size






                share|improve this answer





















                • 3





                  The street lights on the two sides of Cypress are different colors. It’s really visible when flying at night, so perhaps is visible from space too.

                  – Bob Jacobsen
                  yesterday






                • 2





                  @BobJacobsen The island is Cyprus; a cypress is a coniferous tree.

                  – David Richerby
                  21 hours ago






                • 1





                  @DavidRicherby when capitalized as a proper noun, it's a semiconductor manufacturer

                  – uhoh
                  17 hours ago
















                6












                6








                6







                While LED lighting is taking over (and is likely CW), plenty of outdoor street lights in cities and highways still use high pressure mercury and sodium discharge lamps running on mains AC voltage. They don't rectify and so will produce two pulses per cycle of AC.



                Therefore any technique that can chop up time, a rolling shutter effect or simple aliasing in time from a video device, or even a spinning piece of paper with slits on the end of a space-rated paperclip would be able to distinguish a 50Hz country from a 60Hz country.



                So Suriname|French Guyana or Argentena+Chile+Uraguay+Paraguay+Boliva|north thereof or Saudi Arabia|Neighbors or perhaps Liberia|Neighbors (needs better data)



                For even more fun, just have a look within Japan, Tokyo prefecture and north is 50 Hz, and south of it is 60 Hz!



                enter image description here



                Source





                Two screen shots from the YouTube video 50 Hz vs 60 Hz vs 400 hz A.C. Hum Sound Comparsion converted into GIF:



                enter image description here



                click/open separately to view full size






                share|improve this answer















                While LED lighting is taking over (and is likely CW), plenty of outdoor street lights in cities and highways still use high pressure mercury and sodium discharge lamps running on mains AC voltage. They don't rectify and so will produce two pulses per cycle of AC.



                Therefore any technique that can chop up time, a rolling shutter effect or simple aliasing in time from a video device, or even a spinning piece of paper with slits on the end of a space-rated paperclip would be able to distinguish a 50Hz country from a 60Hz country.



                So Suriname|French Guyana or Argentena+Chile+Uraguay+Paraguay+Boliva|north thereof or Saudi Arabia|Neighbors or perhaps Liberia|Neighbors (needs better data)



                For even more fun, just have a look within Japan, Tokyo prefecture and north is 50 Hz, and south of it is 60 Hz!



                enter image description here



                Source





                Two screen shots from the YouTube video 50 Hz vs 60 Hz vs 400 hz A.C. Hum Sound Comparsion converted into GIF:



                enter image description here



                click/open separately to view full size







                share|improve this answer














                share|improve this answer



                share|improve this answer








                edited 15 hours ago

























                answered yesterday









                uhohuhoh

                35.6k18123443




                35.6k18123443








                • 3





                  The street lights on the two sides of Cypress are different colors. It’s really visible when flying at night, so perhaps is visible from space too.

                  – Bob Jacobsen
                  yesterday






                • 2





                  @BobJacobsen The island is Cyprus; a cypress is a coniferous tree.

                  – David Richerby
                  21 hours ago






                • 1





                  @DavidRicherby when capitalized as a proper noun, it's a semiconductor manufacturer

                  – uhoh
                  17 hours ago
















                • 3





                  The street lights on the two sides of Cypress are different colors. It’s really visible when flying at night, so perhaps is visible from space too.

                  – Bob Jacobsen
                  yesterday






                • 2





                  @BobJacobsen The island is Cyprus; a cypress is a coniferous tree.

                  – David Richerby
                  21 hours ago






                • 1





                  @DavidRicherby when capitalized as a proper noun, it's a semiconductor manufacturer

                  – uhoh
                  17 hours ago










                3




                3





                The street lights on the two sides of Cypress are different colors. It’s really visible when flying at night, so perhaps is visible from space too.

                – Bob Jacobsen
                yesterday





                The street lights on the two sides of Cypress are different colors. It’s really visible when flying at night, so perhaps is visible from space too.

                – Bob Jacobsen
                yesterday




                2




                2





                @BobJacobsen The island is Cyprus; a cypress is a coniferous tree.

                – David Richerby
                21 hours ago





                @BobJacobsen The island is Cyprus; a cypress is a coniferous tree.

                – David Richerby
                21 hours ago




                1




                1





                @DavidRicherby when capitalized as a proper noun, it's a semiconductor manufacturer

                – uhoh
                17 hours ago







                @DavidRicherby when capitalized as a proper noun, it's a semiconductor manufacturer

                – uhoh
                17 hours ago













                4














                Belgium, sort of:



                enter image description here



                Belgium has road lighting on almost all of its roads. The neighboring countries don't. The southern Netherlands, the Ruhrgebiet and the Lille area are densely populated so the distinction is less clear here.






                share|improve this answer
























                • And of course the SE of Belgium would have to be disregarded here as the lighting there is no different from that in neighbouring areas of Germany or France.

                  – jwenting
                  8 hours ago
















                4














                Belgium, sort of:



                enter image description here



                Belgium has road lighting on almost all of its roads. The neighboring countries don't. The southern Netherlands, the Ruhrgebiet and the Lille area are densely populated so the distinction is less clear here.






                share|improve this answer
























                • And of course the SE of Belgium would have to be disregarded here as the lighting there is no different from that in neighbouring areas of Germany or France.

                  – jwenting
                  8 hours ago














                4












                4








                4







                Belgium, sort of:



                enter image description here



                Belgium has road lighting on almost all of its roads. The neighboring countries don't. The southern Netherlands, the Ruhrgebiet and the Lille area are densely populated so the distinction is less clear here.






                share|improve this answer













                Belgium, sort of:



                enter image description here



                Belgium has road lighting on almost all of its roads. The neighboring countries don't. The southern Netherlands, the Ruhrgebiet and the Lille area are densely populated so the distinction is less clear here.







                share|improve this answer












                share|improve this answer



                share|improve this answer










                answered yesterday









                HobbesHobbes

                87.6k2248397




                87.6k2248397













                • And of course the SE of Belgium would have to be disregarded here as the lighting there is no different from that in neighbouring areas of Germany or France.

                  – jwenting
                  8 hours ago



















                • And of course the SE of Belgium would have to be disregarded here as the lighting there is no different from that in neighbouring areas of Germany or France.

                  – jwenting
                  8 hours ago

















                And of course the SE of Belgium would have to be disregarded here as the lighting there is no different from that in neighbouring areas of Germany or France.

                – jwenting
                8 hours ago





                And of course the SE of Belgium would have to be disregarded here as the lighting there is no different from that in neighbouring areas of Germany or France.

                – jwenting
                8 hours ago











                4














                A part of the border between Austria, Switzerland and Germany may be seen from orbit.



                For the biggest part of the Lake Constance, the Upper Lake, the location of the borders within the water is not defined. Therefore the lake itself is the border, a very wide one, easily to be seen from orbit at day and night.



                Within a smaller part, the Lower Lake, the border within the water is defined.



                See Wikipedia for International borders of Lake Constance or this chart of the Bodensee.



                Another part of the border between France and Germany is the river Rhein between the towns Basel and Karlsruhe, see this chart.






                share|improve this answer





















                • 3





                  Are you saying that... lightness races in orbit...?

                  – Lightness Races in Orbit
                  16 hours ago
















                4














                A part of the border between Austria, Switzerland and Germany may be seen from orbit.



                For the biggest part of the Lake Constance, the Upper Lake, the location of the borders within the water is not defined. Therefore the lake itself is the border, a very wide one, easily to be seen from orbit at day and night.



                Within a smaller part, the Lower Lake, the border within the water is defined.



                See Wikipedia for International borders of Lake Constance or this chart of the Bodensee.



                Another part of the border between France and Germany is the river Rhein between the towns Basel and Karlsruhe, see this chart.






                share|improve this answer





















                • 3





                  Are you saying that... lightness races in orbit...?

                  – Lightness Races in Orbit
                  16 hours ago














                4












                4








                4







                A part of the border between Austria, Switzerland and Germany may be seen from orbit.



                For the biggest part of the Lake Constance, the Upper Lake, the location of the borders within the water is not defined. Therefore the lake itself is the border, a very wide one, easily to be seen from orbit at day and night.



                Within a smaller part, the Lower Lake, the border within the water is defined.



                See Wikipedia for International borders of Lake Constance or this chart of the Bodensee.



                Another part of the border between France and Germany is the river Rhein between the towns Basel and Karlsruhe, see this chart.






                share|improve this answer















                A part of the border between Austria, Switzerland and Germany may be seen from orbit.



                For the biggest part of the Lake Constance, the Upper Lake, the location of the borders within the water is not defined. Therefore the lake itself is the border, a very wide one, easily to be seen from orbit at day and night.



                Within a smaller part, the Lower Lake, the border within the water is defined.



                See Wikipedia for International borders of Lake Constance or this chart of the Bodensee.



                Another part of the border between France and Germany is the river Rhein between the towns Basel and Karlsruhe, see this chart.







                share|improve this answer














                share|improve this answer



                share|improve this answer








                edited 1 hour ago

























                answered 19 hours ago









                UweUwe

                9,43322752




                9,43322752








                • 3





                  Are you saying that... lightness races in orbit...?

                  – Lightness Races in Orbit
                  16 hours ago














                • 3





                  Are you saying that... lightness races in orbit...?

                  – Lightness Races in Orbit
                  16 hours ago








                3




                3





                Are you saying that... lightness races in orbit...?

                – Lightness Races in Orbit
                16 hours ago





                Are you saying that... lightness races in orbit...?

                – Lightness Races in Orbit
                16 hours ago











                1














                Looking at this high resolution image of the Earth at night, here are a few borders I could find.



                US/ Mexico can be partially seen, particularly in the Western US.
                enter image description here



                Guatamala and its southern neighbors of Honduras/ El Salvador
                enter image description here



                India/ Pakistan is VERY noticeable.



                enter image description here



                North/ South Korea is also VERY obvious.



                enter image description here



                Italy seems pretty obvious, but it is probably because the northern end of the country isn't very habitable.



                enter image description here






                share|improve this answer




























                  1














                  Looking at this high resolution image of the Earth at night, here are a few borders I could find.



                  US/ Mexico can be partially seen, particularly in the Western US.
                  enter image description here



                  Guatamala and its southern neighbors of Honduras/ El Salvador
                  enter image description here



                  India/ Pakistan is VERY noticeable.



                  enter image description here



                  North/ South Korea is also VERY obvious.



                  enter image description here



                  Italy seems pretty obvious, but it is probably because the northern end of the country isn't very habitable.



                  enter image description here






                  share|improve this answer


























                    1












                    1








                    1







                    Looking at this high resolution image of the Earth at night, here are a few borders I could find.



                    US/ Mexico can be partially seen, particularly in the Western US.
                    enter image description here



                    Guatamala and its southern neighbors of Honduras/ El Salvador
                    enter image description here



                    India/ Pakistan is VERY noticeable.



                    enter image description here



                    North/ South Korea is also VERY obvious.



                    enter image description here



                    Italy seems pretty obvious, but it is probably because the northern end of the country isn't very habitable.



                    enter image description here






                    share|improve this answer













                    Looking at this high resolution image of the Earth at night, here are a few borders I could find.



                    US/ Mexico can be partially seen, particularly in the Western US.
                    enter image description here



                    Guatamala and its southern neighbors of Honduras/ El Salvador
                    enter image description here



                    India/ Pakistan is VERY noticeable.



                    enter image description here



                    North/ South Korea is also VERY obvious.



                    enter image description here



                    Italy seems pretty obvious, but it is probably because the northern end of the country isn't very habitable.



                    enter image description here







                    share|improve this answer












                    share|improve this answer



                    share|improve this answer










                    answered 1 hour ago









                    PearsonArtPhotoPearsonArtPhoto

                    80.7k16230444




                    80.7k16230444























                        1














                        Another border which is visible due to the lack of light is the Haitian border with the Dominican Republic:



                        Haiti at night



                        The area highlighted on the left is Haiti, of which only Port Au Prince can be seen at night. The bright island on the right is Puerto Rico.





                        share








                        New contributor




                        A Gibb is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                        Check out our Code of Conduct.

























                          1














                          Another border which is visible due to the lack of light is the Haitian border with the Dominican Republic:



                          Haiti at night



                          The area highlighted on the left is Haiti, of which only Port Au Prince can be seen at night. The bright island on the right is Puerto Rico.





                          share








                          New contributor




                          A Gibb is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                          Check out our Code of Conduct.























                            1












                            1








                            1







                            Another border which is visible due to the lack of light is the Haitian border with the Dominican Republic:



                            Haiti at night



                            The area highlighted on the left is Haiti, of which only Port Au Prince can be seen at night. The bright island on the right is Puerto Rico.





                            share








                            New contributor




                            A Gibb is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                            Check out our Code of Conduct.










                            Another border which is visible due to the lack of light is the Haitian border with the Dominican Republic:



                            Haiti at night



                            The area highlighted on the left is Haiti, of which only Port Au Prince can be seen at night. The bright island on the right is Puerto Rico.






                            share








                            New contributor




                            A Gibb is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                            Check out our Code of Conduct.








                            share


                            share






                            New contributor




                            A Gibb is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                            Check out our Code of Conduct.









                            answered 9 mins ago









                            A GibbA Gibb

                            111




                            111




                            New contributor




                            A Gibb is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                            Check out our Code of Conduct.





                            New contributor





                            A Gibb is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                            Check out our Code of Conduct.






                            A Gibb is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                            Check out our Code of Conduct.






























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