Major cities get brighter during holidays, according to a new analysis of satellite images from NASA.

Three years ago a satellite called Suomi NPP, a joint mission between NASA and NOAA, began recording images of Earth from space.

NASA / Via Flickr: gsfc

When we started looking at the data at night over the United States, we were expecting to see a lot of stability in the night time lights. We were surprised to see there is a vibrant increase in activity during the holidays, particularly around areas in the suburbs.

Between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day major US cities put out 20–50% more light than the rest of the year.

NASA / Via Flickr: gsfc

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