Using Public Domain Images

In a broad sense, public domain images are images that the general public are permitted to use without restriction because no exclusive copyright restricts their usage (see also: Using Copyrighted Images). These images are usually quite old (expired copyright), created by the government, or released into the public domain by their creator. For a more comprehensive explanation, see Wikipedia's Public Domain article.

Star Army allows for the use of public domain images. Any unmodified Public Domain image must be placed in the by_license:public_domain: media namespace.

For example, this image is by NASA and is public domain:

the_earth_seen_from_apollo_17.jpg

Star Army is not a repository for images; public domain images should only be on Star Army if they're actually being used in articles.

Finding Public Domain Images

These are freely-usable images. Many public domain images are in the public domain because they're old.

  1. Wikipedia list of public domain image resources
  2. Library of Congress
  3. National Aeronautics and Space Administration - NASA Image Use Policy
  4. New Old Stock - public archives

Note: Pixabay used to have public domain images but now they're under the Pixabay license so they should be treated as normal stock photos and placed in the by_license:pixabay namespace.