ISS Time Lapse Video

We watched this amazing video captured on-board the International Space Station to inspire our curiosity. Send in any more questions to add to the ones below or if you can answer any of our questions, please do!

Questions

How large is the Earth?
Why is the Earth a sphere?
What is the light around the Earth that you can see during the video?
How did they get the International Space Station there?
What are the flashing lights on the Earth?
Why do the stars spin in the opposite direction to the Earth spinning?
Who was the person on-board the space station?