U.S. releases new aerial photos of Cuba

Communist island viewed from satellites, space station

MIAMI – The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration shared aerial photos of Cuba on Friday.

Clouds were partially blocking the Caribbean island. The world was watching the communist country slightly smaller than Pennsylvania, as the U.S. embassy re-opened its doors in Havana.

The federal governments NOAA Satellites and NASA accounts on Twitter posted two different photos, as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry visited the island, about 90 miles south of Key West.

"Cuba is an archipelago of islands ... the dark coastal area is home to the Sierra Maestra mountains," NASA.gov Editor Jerry Wright said on the photo caption. "It is the highest mountain range on the island."

An Expedition 38 crew member aboard the International Space Station shot the photo NASA shared about 11 a.m.

NOAA Environmental Visualization Laboratory posted:"What a historic day!" There is more data available about Cuba on the site's Global View application.

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