The Milky Way above Earth's Bright Atmospheric Glow | International Space Station

The Milky Way above Earth's Bright Atmospheric Glow | International Space Station

Our Milky Way galaxy appears above Earth's bright atmospheric glow in this photograph from the International Space Station as it soared 261 miles above southern Iran at approximately 12:54 a.m. local time on August 23, 2025. The camera was configured for low light and long duration settings.

You will also notice green and yellow airglow that occurs when atoms and molecules in the Earth's upper atmosphere, excited by sunlight, emit light to shed their excess energy. Or, it can happen when atoms and molecules that have been ionized by sunlight collide with and capture a free electron. In both cases, they eject a particle of light—called a photon—in order to relax again. Unlike episodic and fleeting auroras, airglow shines constantly throughout Earth’s atmosphere, and the result is a tenuous bubble of light that closely encases our entire planet.

Follow Expedition 73:
https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/

Expedition 73 Crew

Station Commander: Sergey Ryzhikov (Roscosmos)

JAXA Flight Engineer (Japan): Kimiya Yui

Roscosmos (Russia) Flight Engineers: Alexey Zubritskiy, Oleg Platonov

NASA Flight Engineers: Jonny Kim, Zena Cardman, Mike Fincke

An international partnership of space agencies provides and operates the elements of the International Space Station (ISS). The principals are the space agencies of the United States, Russia, Europe, Japan, and Canada.

Learn more about the important research being operated on Station:
https://www.nasa.gov/iss-science

For more information about STEM on Station:

https://www.nasa.gov/stemonstation
Science, Technology, Engineering, Math (STEM)

Credit: NASA's Johnson Space Center
Release Date: Sept. 5, 2025

#NASA #Space #ISS #Science #MilkyWayGalaxy #Stars #Planets #Earth #Atmosphere #Airglow #Astronauts #AstronautPhotography #UnitedStates #Japan #日本 #JAXA #Cosmonauts #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #HumanSpaceflight #SpaceLaboratory #InternationalCooperation #Expedition73 #STEM #Education