Raspberry Pi computer looks down on Earth

This is a neat image of Planet Earth, showing another beautiful day in the Mediterranean.

The outlines of Italy, Corsica and Sardinia are unmistakable. The view to the west includes the Balearics.

What's interesting about the picture is that it was taken with a commercial off-the-shelf Raspberry Pi computer and camere.

The UK satellite company SSTL attached the equipment to a demonstration spacecraft to see how it would perform, BBC News reports.

The European Space Agency sent two Raspberry Pi units to the International Space Station (ISS). But these were ruggedised units specially prepared for the purpose.

The one flying on SSTL's Demonstration of Technology satellite (DoT-1) is the same set-up you would purchase on the High Street. SSTL spent £50.

The only modification that's been made is to swap the standard lens for a fish-eye one.

"We bought three (computers) and did some tests to see which one was performing the best - selected that and flew it," explained SSTL engineering director Rob Goddard.

"We put it in a metal box but fundamentally we didn't do anything to the Pi Zero."