As stated in my introduction, the book Earthwatch, by Charles Sheffield, was a big influence on the development of my work. First published in 1981, the book contained beautiful images of the Earth recorded by the N.A.S.A. Landsat satellite from 570 miles high. Images of the Earth are much more familiar to us now, but this book came out 24 years before Google Earth appeared in 2005.
I found it fascinating that some of the surface textures in these images appeared so similar to surface textures we might experience on a small scale in the environment around us. The “frames” recorded by the Landsat satellite are actually 115 miles x 115 miles square. They are not technically photographs, they are scans obtained with a Multi-Spectral Scanner, which is why the colours sometimes look artificial. They really captured my imagination on so many different levels.
The Earth As Art ebook below is similar to the Earthwatch book, as the Landsat images within have been chosen largely for their aesthetic qualities. Some of these might be more easily mistaken for abstract paintings. If you click in the bottom right corner you can experience the book full screen.