Categories: NASASpace ExplorationSpace FlightSpace Station

Vine Video Of Auroras From Space Is Too Hypnotizing For Words

Screenshot of a Vine video from space taken by Expedition 40 astronaut Reid Wiseman in July 2014. Credit: Reid Wiseman/Vine

Looks like NASA’s Reid Wiseman is at it again. The prolific social-media-posting astronaut on the International Space Station just put up this Vine video showing auroras shining over Australia. Hard to believe this was captured from Earth orbit.

It seems the astronaut is quite fascinated by these lights, which are produced when particles from the sun move along magnetic field lines around our planet and “excite” molecules high in the atmosphere. Previously, Wiseman posted another Vine video of auroras while constellation Orion rose in the background.

Wiseman is also among those crew members posting pictures of Tropical Storm Arthur and participating in friendly head shave-offs for the World Cup (Wiseman was among those who lost.) And he’s a pretty adept photographer, too.

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You can follow the many updates from space on Reid Wiseman’s Twitter feed. He’s just one of six crew members with Expedition 40.

Elizabeth Howell

Elizabeth Howell is the senior writer at Universe Today. She also works for Space.com, Space Exploration Network, the NASA Lunar Science Institute, NASA Astrobiology Magazine and LiveScience, among others. Career highlights include watching three shuttle launches, and going on a two-week simulated Mars expedition in rural Utah. You can follow her on Twitter @howellspace or contact her at her website.