(COMBO) This combination of handout satellite pictures created on December 1, 2025 shows an aerial satellite image courtesy of USGS Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center of the Ashburn, Virginia area in 2002 (top) and an aerial satellite image courtesy of Planet Labs (PBC) of the "Data Center Alley" area in Ashburn, Virginia, in November 2025. Data centers are the physical infrastructure that make our digital lives possible, yet most people have never seen one up close or understand how they operate. Roughly 12,000 data centers are in operation in the world, with about half in the US, according to Cloudscene, a data center directory. (Photo by various sources / AFP via Getty Images) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO / USGS Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center / Planet Labs PBC / Handout" - HANDOUT - NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS / TO GO WITH AFP STORY by Alex PIGMAN: "Data centers: a view from the inside"