These are the first images from the ISS – as captured by a zero-gravity drone

A floating, zero-gravity drone is now roaming around the International Space Station shooting photos and video.

Some of the first images captured by the so-called Internal Ball Camera Drone have been released by Japan’s Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).

The device, which looks like the love child of the Marksman-H combat remote from Star Wars and Eve from WALL-E, has been on-bard the ISS for over a month.

The zero gravity drone can be controlled via remote from the ground and is capable of travelling “anywhere at any time via autonomous flight and recording images from any angle” (via BBC).

Previously, the photos and videos on board had been taken by the astronauts, but this will allow them to remain focused on the job in hand.

The idea is that the drone can free up to 10% of the astronauts working hours aboard the ISS.

Here you can see a video of the Int-Ball in action below:

In a post on the JAXA website, the agency says it is: “Enabling flight controllers and researchers on the ground to check the crew’s work from the same viewpoint as the crew. The effective cooperative work between in space and on the ground will contribute to maximized results of “Kibo” utilization experiments.”

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