What do astronauts on the International Space Station see when they look out the window?

(Photo Credit: Reid Wiseman/NASA)

If you have ever wondered, then Russian cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev  and NASA astronaut, Reid Wiseman, have provided the public with the best idea yet.

This video from Oleg is only short, however the clip shows the structure of the amazing Japanese module of the International Space Station, along with magnificent views of Earth and the station’s massive solar arrays.

If you understand Russian, then do comment on this post and let me know what Oleg is saying to his Russian colleague at the end!

Following Oleg’s video, NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman posted his own amazing time-lapse looking out of one of the ISS’s windows.

Titled: ‘Single Earth orbit. Sun never sets flying parallel w/terminator line’

Notice how the sun fails to set behind the Earth’s horizon?

That is because the space station’s current orbital path – called the terminator- means that the ISS is in perpetual sunlight, as it doesn’t move into a position where the sun sets. The video is sped up (notice how fast the Earth is moving) to demonstrate this phenomenon during a single orbit. Typically the station experiences a sun set during each orbit, however its current path doesn’t allow this to happen.

Amazing!

[Video credit to Oleg Artemyev, Roscosmos, Reid Wiseman, NASA]