NASA astronaut shares incredible picture of the Southern Lights from the International Space Station

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06:04 2018-04-19

Taking the perfect photograph can be down to many factors, from using the best lighting to finding the optimum vantage point. And, in terms of the latter, you don’t get a much better view than that from the International Space Station.

NASA astronaut, Ricky Arnold, recently posted an image on his Instagram account (@astro_ricky) of the Aurora Australis, or Souther Lights, taken from the International Space Station (ISS).

Sunrise is seen creeping across Earth as the green glow of the southern hemisphere's aurora dances below the International Space Station (@iss). NASA astronaut Ricky Arnold snapped this image from his perch high above the planet on humanity's orbiting laboratory on April 9. The glimmering lights of auroras provide spectacular views, but also capture the imagination of scientists who study incoming energy and particles from our Sun. Auroras are one effect of such energetic particles, which can speed out from the Sun both in a steady stream called the solar wind or from giant eruptions known as coronal mass ejections or CMEs. After a trip toward Earth that can last three days, the solar particles and magnetic fields cause the release of particles already trapped near Earth, which in turn trigger reactions in the upper atmosphere in which oxygen and nitrogen molecules release photons of light. The result: the Northern and Southern lights. Credit: NASA/@Astro_Ricky #nasa #space #spacestation #aurora #southernlights #dance #glow #green #beautiful #science #solarwind #solarsystem #view #sunrise #earth #sun #planet #science #pictureoftheday

A post shared by NASA (@nasa) on Apr 11, 2018 at 12:55pm PDT

The beautiful green lights of the natural phenomenon are seen dancing around the rising sun over the Earth’s southern hemisphere.

American spaceman Ricky, who is currently living on the ISS stationed 250 miles above Earth, captioned the snap with: “Sunrise crashes an aurora party over the southern hemisphere”.

The impressive picture was then re-posted by NASA and made the space agency’s image of the day last week.

Happy #MarylandDay, Hon!

A post shared by NASA Astronaut Ricky Arnold (@astro_ricky) on Mar 25, 2018 at 3:24pm PDT

There are two types of Aurora that occur on Earth – the Aurora Borealis in the northern hemisphere, known as the Northern Lights, and the Aurora Australis in the southern hemisphere, the Southern Lights.

They occur when electrically charged particles from the sun enter the planet’s atmosphere. When these particles collide with gas particles, including hydrogen and helium, the light display happens. Mesmerising!

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