November 22, 2024

Starry Nights and Snowy Lights: Space Station’s Stunning View of Eastern Canada

Image of eastern Canada captured on January 1, 2024, by an astronaut aboard the International Space Station.Lights, snow, and clouds brighten this wintery scene of Earths northern latitudes.An astronaut aboard the International Space Station took this photo of eastern Canada. The image was taken near the northernmost limit of the stations likely equatorial orbit, which tops out about 52 degrees north of the equator. The viewpoint includes a view of area stations solar panels in the foreground, Earths horizon about 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) away, and celestial things far in the distance. Lights, snow, and clouds brighten the winter season scene on Earth.Two of Canadas provinces– Quebec, and Newfoundland and Labrador– are pictured together with the territory of Nunavut on the other side of the Hudson Strait. Toward Earths limb, the coast of Greenland is faintly noticeable underneath the clouds. Higher in the environment, airglow hugs the curvature of Earth and the light of the aurora cuts throughout the scene.Thin cloud layers cover the Atlantic Ocean, while clearer skies dominate the land exposing snow cover, the lights of small settlements, and rivers streaming toward Canadas coast. Tucked into the frozen scene is Mistastin Lake, which partly fills the anxiety of an impact crater. The crater works as a website where astronauts are trained in geology and work on strategies for planetary exploration.Astronaut picture ISS070-E-51709 was acquired on January 1, 2024, with a Nikon D5 digital video camera using a focal length of 24 millimeters. It is supplied by the ISS Crew Earth Observations Facility and the Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit, Johnson Space. The image was taken by a member of the Expedition 70 team. The image has been cropped and enhanced to enhance contrast, and lens artifacts have actually been eliminated. The International Space Station Program supports the laboratory as part of the ISS National Lab to assist astronauts take images of Earth that will be of the best worth to scientists and the general public, and to make those images easily offered on the Internet. Caption by Andrea Wenzel/Jacobs-JETS II Contract at NASA-JSC.