Astronaut Films View Of The Aurora Borealis From The International Space Station

Jan 15, 2020 by apost team

The breathtaking aurora borealis is able to be seen on Earth and from space, and while the view we are used to witnessing is incredible, it's even more incredible from space.

Astronaut Paolo Nespoli, living and working on the International Space Station, captured the view of the aurora borealis lighting up the Earth's atmosphere beneath him as he flew by in the space laboratory. This view gave us the ability to move over the phenomenon rather than wait for it to move above us.

The aurora borealis, or northern lights as they are more commonly known, are a natural light display that can be witnessed far north of the equator. They occur mostly during the winter months, but can happen at any time of the year. When they appear there is a disturbance in the Earth's atmosphere that is caused by particles in solar wind, reports Space.com. In the most basic sense, dangerous particles that are put out by the sun are reacting to our atmosphere as it protects us, and these lights are the result.

apost.com

Aurora borealis are incredible for three reasons, not simply because of how rare they are and how lucky you have to be to witness them. First, there is the color factor. The aurora borealis appear in bright, vivid, green, purple, and red hues. Second is the way the lights move, appearing to dance in the sky overhead, taking viewers by surprise. Third is how rare they are to witness and how lucky you need to get to be in the right place at the right time.

Recently the Earth went through a particularly active period for aurora borealis because of the Sun's activity, which meant that there were plenty of opportunities for astronauts to witness the display from space. The station has cameras mounted to the exterior and interior in order to film Earth as the station flies overhead. This is how the astronauts were able to capture this particularly impressive light show.

For the last several years, trips north to view the lights have increased in popularity, as has our ability to determine when and where they will appear based on space weather and the Sun's activity. Still, according to The Telegraph, because the sun has phases, the northern lights fade for a period of time too.

Have you ever seen the northern lights? Would you travel to be able to do so, and where to?