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15 captivating photos of auroras seen from space

a green and red aurora with a space craft in the foreground
This is one of a series of night time images photographed by one of the Expedition 29 crew members from the International Space Station. It features Aurora Australis over the southern Indian ocean. NASA

An aurora is a dazzling spectacle to witness down here on Earth, but from space, you get an entirely different perspective on the light show. While most of us won’t have the opportunity to see the beauty of an aurora from space first-hand, astronauts have captured stunning images of what an aurora looks like dancing over our planet.

In February, NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli shared her view of an aurora from the International Space Station, writing on X (formerly Twitter): “Sometimes I can’t believe this is our planet, OUR home. How lucky we are to live somewhere so spectacular and alive. I will definitely miss these views, but I look forward to exploring more of our planet and the beautiful views from the ground.” Moghbeli’s photos show a green aurora australis dancing over the southern hemisphere with the ISS in the foreground.

Unless you have a flight to the ISS booked, you’ll have to settle for experiencing the beauty of auroras from space in photographs. Thankfully the photos are quite beautiful too.

[Related: We finally know what sparks the Northern Lights]

green and red aurora in the middle with a cloudy earth below and stars above
The aurora australis seemingly crowns the Earth’s horizon as the International Space Station orbited 272 miles above the southern Indian Ocean in between Asia and Antarctica. Image: NASA
Space photo
A greenish appearing aurora forms the backdrop for this 35mm scene of the Earth orbiting Space Shuttle Endeavour’s aft cargo bay. Featured in the bay are the antennae for the SIR-C/X-SAR imaging radar instruments, illuminated by moonlight. The crew sighted the southern lights (aurora australis) several times during each of the eleven days of the mission. Image: NASA
Space photo
Earth Observation taken during a night pass by the Expedition 40 crew aboard the International Space Station (ISS). A docked Soyuz spacecrat is also visible in foreground. Image: NASA
red and green aurora over a blue ocean
A brilliant and vivid Aurora Borealis illuminates the Earth’s northern hemisphere on Jan 20, 2016, providing a spectacular view for members of Expedition 46 aboard the International Space Station. Image: NASA
green aurora
The aurora australis streams across the Earth’s atmosphere as the International Space Station orbited 271 miles above the southern Indian Ocean in between Asia and Antarctica. Image: NASA
green aurora over a cloudy earth
While docked and onboard the International Space Station, a STS-123 Endeavour crew member captured the glowing green beauty of the Aurora Borealis. Looking northward across the Gulf of Alaska, over a low pressure area (cloud vortex), the aurora brightens the night sky. This image was taken on March 21, 2008. Image: NASA
a green, yellow, purple, and blue aurora over the earth
The aurora australis streams across the Earth’s atmosphere as the International Space Station orbited 271 miles above the southern Indian Ocean in between Asia and Antarctica. Image: NASA
a green aurora line in a dark sky
Astronaut Don L. Lind, mission specialist, termed this scene of an aurora in the Southern Hemisphere as “spectacular,” during a TV down link featuring discussion of the auroral observations on the seven-day flight. This scene was captured by astronaut Robert F. Overmyer, crew commander, using a 35mm camera. Dr. Lind, monitoring activity in the magnetosphere at various points throughout the flight, pinpointed the spacecraft’s location as being over a point halfway between Australia and the Antarctic continent. There are moonlit clouds on Earth. The blue-green band and the tall red rays are aurora. The brownish band parallel to the Earth’s horizon is a luminescence of the atmosphere itself and is referred to as airglow. Dr. T. Hallinan of the Geophysical Institute of Fairbanks serves as principal investigator for the auroral observations experiment and spent a great deal of time with Dr. Lind in preparation for the flight. Image: NASA
green and purple aurora
Earth Observation taken during a night pass by the Expedition 40 crew aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Folder lists this as: Phenomenal Aurora. Part of the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) arm is also visible. Image: NASA
an aurora over city lights
Members of Expedition 43 on the International Space Station captured this contrasting image of Earth sunrise, aurora and sparling cities in northern Europe. Image: NASA
the arm of a space craft in the foreground with a green aurora in the background
Night Earth Observations taken by Expedition 41 crewmember. Aurora and Remote Manipulator System (RMS) are visible. Image: NASA
green aurora over clouds
A 35mm frame of the Aurora Australis, also known as the Southern Lights, photographed from Space Shuttle Discovery’s flight deck by one of its seven crew members. One of the mission objectives was to measure the spectral and spatial characteristics of auroral emissions. While passing over the sunlighted portion of Earth, the crew was able to take a number of photos of the various geographic points on the planet; much of the time on nightside passes was devoted to a thorough study and documentation of auroral displays. Image: NASA
a green aurora with the 'legs' of the international space station
Earth observation taken by the Expedition 40 crew aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Image: NASA
city lights in the night's sky with a green aurora overhead
The city lights (bottom center to far left) of Moscow and Saint Petersburg in Russia, to Helsinki, Finland, are framed by an aurora in this photograph from the International Space Station as it orbited 264 miles above. Image: NASA

The post 15 captivating photos of auroras seen from space appeared first on Popular Science.

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