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The first photos taken by a new, revolutionary weather satellite orbiting Earth show our planet in a stark new light.。

The high resolution photos snapped by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) GOES-16 satellite show the Earth as seen in different wavelengths of light and also include a particularly stunning shot of the moon peeking out just above the cloudy planet.。

Although the image of the moon and Earth shining together is beautiful, it also serves a purpose. Scientists used the lunar body to calibrate the new spacecraft's camera. 。

The full sunlit side of the Earth.Credit: noaa 。

GOES-16 -- previously called GOES-R --is currently in an orbit about 22,300 miles from Earth. 。

"One of our GOES-16 scientists compared this to seeing a newborn baby’s first pictures — it’s that exciting for us,” Stephen Volz, director of NOAA’s Satellite and Information Service, said in a statement.。

Dust can be seen off the coast of the African continent on the right side of this image.Credit: noaa
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GOES-16 marks a major leap in technology for NOAA.。

The satellite's high-resolution images should help scientists track lightning, volcanic ash, water vapor and other variables to better predict what weather is like around the United States.。

The United States in multiple wavelengths of light revealing water vapor, smoke, ice and ash.Credit: NOAA。

GOES-16 also has a mode that allows NOAA mission managers to take images every 30 seconds. 。 That may not sound like much, but it could be the "difference between life and death" during something like a tornado outbreak, Eric Webster, vice president and director of environmental systems at Harris Corp., told。Mashable。

Mashable 。

before the satellite's launch in November 2016. (Harris Corp. built the Advanced Baseline Imager, the main instrument on GOES-16.)。

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