THIS mesmerising photo taken aboard the International Space Station is helping shoot Hull's profile skyward.
Commander Chris Hadfield was sure to include Hull and the green East Riding countryside in a collection of snaps he took while hurtling through the galaxy at 17,398mph and from 217 miles up.
More than 500,000 of the Canadian astronaut's Twitter followers have seen the image, many sharing it with others.
Cmdr Hadfield has amassed his army of cyberspace followers, thanks to his photographs of cities around the world.
The former fighter pilot has described looking at Earth as a work of art, saying: "So much of the world's beauty is simply art itself."
He described part of Italy as a "diamond" and confessed to being enthralled by patterns in the seas.
Cmdr Hadfield failed to liken Hull to a priceless jewel, but he did comment on the fine weather, describing his picture as: "Hull and the Humber estuary, Yorkshire, England, on a picture-perfect beautiful day."
The photograph shows built-up Hull, and the oddly shaped Spurn Point, stretching into the North Sea, is also visible.
Lord Mayor of Hull, Councillor Danny Brown welcomed the photograph.
He said: "It's very interesting. Anything that raises Hull's profile has to be a good thing.
"It was very good of Commander Hadfield to have picked out Hull."
Cmdr Hadfield arrived at the space station on December 21 aboard a Russian Soyuz rocket.
He has flown into orbit twice before on the space shuttle, as a mission specialist aboard STS-74 and STS-100, and was the first Canadian to walk in space.
Twitter followers have been told of a number of differences between life on Earth and onboard a space station.
He said: "In space, we snore much less – with no weight on sinuses and airways, it makes for a quieter night. Many subtle changes up here."
The International Space Station orbits the Earth every 92 minutes, with Cmdr Hadfield overseeing onboard operations, including more than 100 scientific experiments.
Cmdr Hadfield explained that the station is being used as a "testbed" for interplanetary travel. Water recycling and high-temperature experiments are being undertaken in weightlessness.
He is being constantly kept up-to-speed with news on Earth.
On Wednesday night, Cmdr Hadfield posted a photograph of the Vatican after Pope Francis was elected the new head of the Catholic Church.
Asked by a Canadian TV channel why he was tweeting about the mission, he replied: "This is too good and wondrous an experience not to share.
"Twitter lets everyone see and experience it as I am, real-time. Great to have so many people aboard!
"The response is a clear indication of how people actually feel about exploration and opportunity, when the barriers of jargon and delay are removed."
Cmdr Hadfield said it takes "several days" for the human body to adapt to weightlessness.
He said ailments included nausea, digestion problems and facial swelling.
Follow @Cmdr_Hadfield on Twitter for more on his space adventure.
