An astronaut aboard the International Space Station took this photo of the Korean Peninsula showing the distribution of nighttime light. North Korea (extending beyond the top of this image) lies on the upper part of the peninsula and is almost devoid of nighttime lights. In contrast, South Korea lies on the lower part of the peninsula and exhibits night lights from many cities of different sizes.
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Astronaut photograph ISS070-E-80670 was acquired on January 24, 2024, with a Nikon D5 digital camera using a focal length of 24 millimeters. It is provided by the ISS Crew Earth Observations Facility and the Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit, Johnson Space Center. The image was taken by a member of the Expedition 70 crew. The image has been cropped and enhanced to improve contrast, and lens artifacts have been removed.
While it’s true the DPRK has much less urban development than SK (and half the population), you can see how this NASA photograph compares to the one in the OP; most “lol north korea no electricity” photographs greatly enhance the amount of light emitted by SK while dimming or even erasing light from the DPRK.
That’s part of it. The other part is just the fact that SK is more industrially and economically developed – the DPRK has been subjected to decades of unconscionable sanctions while SK has been an ally of the US and the “global community” for the same time period.
https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/153325/the-korean-peninsula-at-night
While it’s true the DPRK has much less urban development than SK (and half the population), you can see how this NASA photograph compares to the one in the OP; most “lol north korea no electricity” photographs greatly enhance the amount of light emitted by SK while dimming or even erasing light from the DPRK.
So, the light is more spread out in DPRK in the rural areas, while ROK has concentrated lights in the Urban areas?
That’s part of it. The other part is just the fact that SK is more industrially and economically developed – the DPRK has been subjected to decades of unconscionable sanctions while SK has been an ally of the US and the “global community” for the same time period.
Ofc, thank you for reminding me of that!