Astronaut Don Pettit shares a breathtaking image of star trails from the ISS, showcasing the beauty of celestial objects viewed from space. The image, captured using a long exposure technique, reveals the intricate patterns created by the ISS's orbit around Earth.
Astronaut Don Pettit, currently residing on the International Space Station (ISS), recently shared a captivating image reminiscent of one he captured during Expedition 30 in 2012. The striking photograph showcases the beauty of star trails, a phenomenon created by the ISS's continuous orbit around Earth.
Pettit, taking to the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, now X, explained the image was captured using a long exposure technique over approximately 30 minutes during orbital night. He highlighted the collaboration with National Geographic photographer Babak Tafreshi, who assembled the image from multiple 30-second exposures. Tafreshi's image processing expertise was crucial as the ISS lacks such advanced capabilities. Pettit expressed gratitude to Tafreshi for his skillful work, emphasizing the importance of his contributions.The image itself displays a mesmerizing pattern of star trails, curving and bending due to atmospheric refraction as they converge towards the Earth's horizon. Intriguingly, the photograph also captures a vivid display of lightning, adding another layer of dynamism to the celestial spectacle. Tafreshi, in an Instagram video, elucidates the differences between capturing star trails from Earth and space. He explains that while both methods utilize long exposures, the source of motion varies significantly. On Earth, the star trails appear as circular patterns around celestial poles like Polaris, reflecting the Earth's rotation. In orbit, however, the star trails are formed by the constant motion of the ISS, orbiting Earth every 90 minutes and experiencing approximately 16 sunrises and sunsets daily. Tafreshi further emphasizes that when Pettit points the camera towards the ISS's pitch axis, rather than Polaris, the star trails appear circular above the Earth's limb, accompanied by streaks of city lights, lightning flashes, aurora, and atmospheric airglow, all contributing to a breathtaking panorama of our planet viewed from an extraordinary vantage point. The collaboration between Pettit and Tafreshi transcends the physical distance of 400 kilometers (250 miles) separating them, offering a shared perspective of our planet while highlighting the wonders of both terrestrial and celestial imagery
STAR TRAILS INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION ASTRONAUT DON PETTIT BABAK TAFRESHI SPACE PHOTOGRAPHY CELESTIAL OBJECTS
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