NASA astronaut Matthew Dominick, ending his six-month stay on the International Space Station (ISS), has shared an impressive timelapse of Earth. The video was made during a night flight at an altitude of about 400 kilometers over Asia. The footage shows flashes of lightning, bright city lights and the lights of fishing boats. Dominick noted that fishing lights are one of his favorite sightings during night flights. However, the photo also shows a bright red glow, the origin of which remains a mystery.
Timelapse traveling Northeast over Southeast Asia.
In order of appearance:
* So many lightning strikes
* Colored lights from fishing boats – one of my favorite things to see at night from the ISS
* Juxtaposition of city lights on the Korean Peninsula
* Red lights North of… pic.twitter.com/vN5VnCKirb— Matthew Dominick (@dominickmatthew) September 14, 2024
Commenters suggest that this light may be the result of volcanic activity or may be used by commercial fishing vessels to bait squid. One user noted that the red lights were from a large fishing fleet east of Hokkaido and were often seen in satellite images.
During his time on the ISS, Dominick posted not only photos of Earth, but also images of the station’s interior. However, his mission is coming to an end: next month, the SpaceX Crew-9 spacecraft will arrive at the station, on which Dominick and three colleagues will return to Earth in October.
Space photography enthusiasts who are used to Dominick’s stunning images won’t be without new content. Don Pettit, a spaceflight veteran who recently arrived at the station, is also known for his impressive photographs. He recently took a remarkable photo of SpaceX’s Polaris Dawn spacecraft during its re-entry after a historic five-day mission.
We previously reported on how a mysterious glow in Jupiter’s atmosphere could be caused by dark matter.
According to Digital Trends
