See aurora from International Space Station

William Atkins
Saturday, 21 August 2010 23:40

Science - Space

With solar activity increasing, the chance to see auroras from the Earth, such as the Northern and Southern Lights, has increased. And, you can see exceptional images of these auroras from a special vantage point: the International Space Station.

 

 

These geomagnetic storms from the Sun have been frequent lately.

In fact, the month of August has seen quite a few auroras from heightened Sun activity.

And, when you are sitting in orbit above the Earth, as have been the ISS Expedition 24 crew members of the International Space Station, your vantage point is quite exceptional.

In one highlighted image, NASA astronaut and recent spacewalker Douglas 'Doug' Wheelock took an image of an aurora with Earth below and slightly lit by the Sun.

See some of the pictures taken by these astronauts at the SpaceWeather.com website, along with other images taken by ground-based people.

See a larger image of the Wheelock aurora.

Learn more about auroras from the NASA webpage "Aurora."

The article states in part: "Auroral displays are associated with the solar wind, a continuous flow of electrically charged particles from the sun. When these particles reach the earth's magnetic field, some get trapped. Many of these particles travel toward the earth's magnetic poles. When the charged particles strike atoms and molecules in the atmosphere, energy is released. Some of this energy appears in the form of auroras."