The captivating motion of various satellites orbiting our planet has been revealed in a fascinating Nasa video . Created by the agency ’ s Goddard Space Flight Centre in Maryland , it shows their entire Earth-observation fleet and the paths they take around Earth . While the ISS sweeps across ‘ diagonally ’ , in the video at least , others like the Landsat series are seen travelling from pole to pole . Scroll down for video . Nasa scientists in Maryland , US have created a satellite visualisation ( shown ) . It shows dozens of Earth-observing satellites currently orbiting our planet . They include Landsat 7 and 8 , part of Nasa 's long-serving series . And the ISS can also be seen sweeping diagonally across Earth . The animation solely shows Nasa 's Earth-observing satellites , and not any run by other space agencies or private organisations . The satellites measure rainfall , solar irradiance , clouds , sea surface height , ocean salinity and other aspects of the global environment . ‘ Together , they provide a picture of the Earth as a system , ’ said Nasa . The animation shows the day of 16 February 2015 from 00.00 GMT to 12.00 GMT . While the satellites might look close together , the amount of space in Earth orbit is vast , and there is little to no chance of any colliding . In fact , they are all placed on specific orbits within their orbital bands that ensure the minimal chance possible of colliding with another satellite . This does n't always go to plan , though . In 2009 , a US Iridium satellite and a defunct Russian Cosmos satellite collided , creating hundreds of new pieces of debris in orbit . But the precision of modern satellites is best seen by a quartet of satellites known as the ‘ A-train ’ - Aqua , Aura , CloudSat and Calipso - which follow each other closely in their orbits . The two closest , Cloudsat and Calipso , are just 12.5 seconds apart , but this equates to 58 miles ( 93km ) in distance . The four satellites work together to provide even better observations of Earth . ‘ It ’ s acting like one satellite with 15 instruments onboard , ’ Ernie Wright , an animator at NASA ’ s Goddard Space Flight Centre , told Wired , referring to the 15 instruments shared between them . The Landsat series of satellites have , since 1972 , been used to measure Earth ’ s continental and coastal landscapes at a scale where human impacts and natural changes can be monitored . Shown is an illustration of Landsat 8 , which launched on 11 February 2013 . Construction of the ISS began on 20 November 1998 . It supports a crew of up to six , with crews split into groups of three . The station orbits at a height of about 255 miles ( 410km ) . It has a total mass of about 990,000 pounds ( 450,000kg ) and has living space roughly equivalent to a five-bedroom house . It completes an orbit of Earth every 92.91 minutes and moves at 17,100 miles ( 27,600km ) per hour . It has now been in space for more than 5,900 days , during which time it has completed more than 92,000 orbits of Earth , and has been continuously occupied for more than 13 years . Some satellites , like Landsat 7 and 8 , orbit from pole to pole , known as a polar orbit . This allows them to see almost the entirety of Earth as the globe rotates underneath them . The Landsat series of satellites have , since 1972 , been used to measure Earth ’ s continental and coastal landscapes at a scale where human impacts and natural changes can be monitored . The ISS , meanwhile , has a diagonal orbit that keeps it relatively near the equator , which enables various command centres across the world to stay in contact with the crew . Recently launched satellites on the animation include the Soil Moisture Active-Passive ( SMAP ) mission , which measures the surface soil moisture on Earth , and was launched on 31 January 2015 . A full list of the satellites and their missions is available at Nasa ’ s Scientific Visualisation Studio website . The ISS has a diagonal orbit that keeps it relatively near the equator ( shown ) , which enables various command centres across the world to stay in contact with the crew . As the Earth rotates underneath , the ISS appears to move up and down in curves , although in reality it is always moving in one direction .
Nasa scientists in Maryland , US have created a satellite visualisation . It shows dozens of Earth-observing satellites currently orbiting our planet . They include Landsat 7 and 8 , part of Nasa 's long-serving series . And the ISS can also be seen sweeping diagonally across Earth . Many Earth-observing satellites orbit pole to pole to see the whole planet .