Two cameras that are expected to transmit images of the Earth on the Internet early next year have been launched and are headed for the International Space Station.
One of the cameras shoots photos, while the other streams video.
They were developed by Vancouver-based Urthecast.
The cameras were on board an unmanned Russian cargo spacecraft that blasted off today from the Baikonur Cosmodome in Kazakhstan.
They will be installed on the Zvezda service module, the Russian segment of the space station, during two space walks in mid-December.
The cameras are expected to start rolling a few months later once tests are completed.
Company officials say there will be about a one-hour delay before the images taken by the cameras show up on Urthecast's website.
They will be able to show flash mobs, outdoor events, stadiums, boats and planes, but images such as licence plates and people's faces will be too small to be visible.
The cameras were packed in among three tons of food, fuel and supplies that will be delivered to the space station in about four days.
