NASA Astronaut Captures Mysterious Flash of Light on ISS
NASA astronaut Matthew Dominick, currently aboard the International Space Station (ISS), recently captured footage that reveals a rare and mysterious phenomenon in Earth’s atmosphere.
While Dominick was creating a timelapse to capture an incredible view of Earth from above North Africa, he came across something very interesting: an unusual green flash.
In the timelapse taken from the ISS, Dominick was initially trying to capture spectacular images of Earth, including the lightning storms that are commonly seen from space. However, while reviewing the footage, he discovered a bright fireball entering Earth’s atmosphere.
The green flash is believed to be a bolide, which is an extremely bright meteor that explodes upon entering Earth’s atmosphere. Bolides are much brighter than typical meteors, and can produce a very striking flash when they explode.
Dominick notes that lightning storms, which are often seen from space as flashing lights, are not the focus of this discovery. Instead, the green flash seen in this footage is the result of a bolide burning up in Earth’s atmosphere.
Dominick posted the footage and information on Twitter, explaining that he used a high ISO setting to capture the images, and when examining the results, he discovered the bolide. He also listed the time and date of the meteor, which was September 2, 2024 at 20:12:20 GMT.
Dominick is asking for the public’s help in identifying the type of meteor in more detail, and hopes to gain more information about his newly discovered phenomenon. He invites people who know about bolides or meteors to share their knowledge.
The discovery highlights the richness and complexity of natural phenomena that can be observed from space, and provides insight into how celestial objects interact with Earth’s atmosphere. The footage also shows how technology and social media are enabling scientific discovery and the wider exchange of information.
