Astonishing Nasa photos show Kaikoura land raised by earthquake

The powerful 7.8 magnitude Kaikoura earthquake made headlines around the world, drawing international attention to New Zealand.

It seems we also piqued the interest of Nasa. The space agency's "earth observatory" uses satellite data to monitor the effects of environmental change - and what its saw in Kaikoura was, in its words, "remarkable".

The satellite images capture the earthquake's effects, with the seabed visibly lifting as much as 5.5 metres in one area.

 "The sudden shifting of such a huge quantity of rock produced some unusual sights," Nasa reported.

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Newly-exposed land, raised out of the ocean by the quake, is especially prominent in a "before and after" comparison.

Rocks unearthed by the powerful shake are also visible to satellites.

A GeoNet report suggested the newly-raised land was here to stay for hundreds to thousands of years to come, which meant Kaikoura residents could look forward to the new land as a permanent feature of their geography.

This is not the first time land has noticeably lifted in New Zealand following an earthquake.

Napier's 1931 earthquake saw the city rise by 1 to 2 metres above sea level - the Napier airport is situated in what was once an estuary.

Meanwhile, in quake-prone Wellington, a magnitude 8.2 earthquake in 1855 raised much of Wellington waterfront by over 2 metres.