- The images were taken by Japanese astronaut, Koichi Wakata, and shared with his 71,000-strong Twitter army
- They include several shots of the Southern Lights taken 200 miles above Earth on their way across Australia
- 51-year-old Wakata also posted a stunning image of the moon setting in Earth’s blue atmosphere
Koichi Wakata, a Japanese astronaut onboard the International Space Station, has shared these incredible photos from his 200-mile-high perch.
The breathtaking images reveal an unrivalled view of aurora over Australia as well as an incredible shot of the moon setting on the Earth’s blue atmosphere.
‘Flew over fascinating aurora at south of Australia a few hours ago,’ Wakata tweeted yesterday, before posting these stunning shots of his view to his 71,000-strong Twitter army.
'Flew
over fascinating aurora at south of Australia a few hours ago,'
astronaut Koichi Wakata tweeted yesterday, before posting this stunning
shot of his view to his 71,000-strong Twitter army
WHAT CAUSES AN AURORA?
An aurora is caused by collisions between electrons from space with the oxygen and nitrogen in Earth’s upper atmosphere.
The electrons -which come from the Earth’s magnetosphere -transfer their energy to the oxygen and nitrogen atoms and molecules, making them ‘excited’.
As the gases return to their normal state, they emit photons, small bursts of energy in the form of light to create the spectacular light shows that can be seen from Earth.
The electrons -which come from the Earth’s magnetosphere -transfer their energy to the oxygen and nitrogen atoms and molecules, making them ‘excited’.
As the gases return to their normal state, they emit photons, small bursts of energy in the form of light to create the spectacular light shows that can be seen from Earth.
Like the Northern Lights, the aurora australis is strongest in an oval centred on the south magnetic pole putting on stunning shows in the vast expanse of Antarctica.
When the solar cycle is near its maximum, the Southern Lights can sometimes be in New Zealand, southern Australia as seen in these images, and southern Chile and Argentina.
Auroras are a spectacular sign that our planet is electrically connected to the sun. These light shows are provoked by energy from the sun and fuelled by electrically charged particles trapped in Earth’s magnetic field.
Just
as impressive was Wakata's image of the moon setting in Earth's
atmosphere, similar to another posted by the astronaut earlier this
month
An
aurora, such as this one which took place over Australia, is caused by
collisions between electrons from space with the oxygen and nitrogen in
Earth's atmosphere
The
Southern Lights can sometimes be in New Zealand, southern Australia as
seen in these images, and southern Chile and Argentina
As the gases return to their normal state, they emit photons, small bursts of energy in the form of light.
Just as impressive is Wakata’s image of the moon setting in Earth’s atmosphere, similar to another posted by the astronaut earlier this month.
In Wakata’s earlier image, the sun is behind the Earth, lighting a crescent of the moon and shining through the Earth’s atmosphere.
The lowest reaches of the atmosphere are red, because only the longest wavelengths of visible light, which are red, aren’t scattered by the dense air.
The upper atmosphere, which is not at all dense, allows for the emission of even the shortest wavelengths of light, blue, indigo and violet.
51-year-old Wakata is a Japanese engineer and a veteran of four Nasa Space Shuttle missions, logging around five months in space.
IN
this image, the sun is behind the Earth, lighting a crescent of the
moon and shining through the Earth's atmosphere. The lowest reaches of
the atmosphere are red, because only the longest wavelengths of visible
light, which are red, aren't scattered by the dense air
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