For example, VIIRS was able to detect power outages in the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew, which struck the Caribbean and the southern United States in September 2016. The satellite launched in October 2011 also carries a Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS), which can observe dim light down to the scale of an isolated highway lamp or fishing boat, which is particularly useful for weather forecasting. The mission is managed by NASA with operational support from NOAA and its Joint Polar Satellite System, which manages the satellite's ground system.According to a press release, NPP is equipped with a low-light sensor that distinguishes night lights with six times better spatial resolution and 250 times better resolution of lighting levels (dynamic range) than before. Suomi NPP sends its data once per orbit to a ground station in Svalbard, Norway, and continuously to local direct broadcast users distributed around the world.

The spacecraft flies 824 kilometres (512 miles) above the surface in a polar orbit, circling the planet about 14 times a day. Named for satellite meteorology pioneer Verner Suomi, NPP flies over any given point on the earth’s surface twice each day at roughly 1:30 am and 1:30 pm. In this case, auroras, fires, and other stray light have been removed to emphasize the city lights. VIIRS detects light in a range of wavelengths from green to near-infrared and uses filtering techniques to observe dim signals such as gas flares, auroras, wildfires, city lights, and reflected moonlight.

The night time view of the earth was made possible by the 'day-night band' of the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite. It took 312 orbits and 2.5 terabytes of data to get a clear shot of every parcel of the earth’s land surface and islands. English: This image of the earth at night is a composite assembled from data acquired by the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (Suomi NPP) satellite over nine days in April 2012 and thirteen days in October 2012.

Earth at night nasa