Timelapse Star Trails & Starlinks with Earth Airglow | International Space Station

Timelapse Star Trails & Starlinks with Earth Airglow | International Space Station

NASA astronaut Don Pettit: "Wonky streaks: Starlinks flashing ISS. Compared to the well-defined streaks from star trails, this time exposure shows wonky streaks flashing ISS. These are Starlink satellites reflecting pre-dusk or pre-dawn sunlight off their solar panels. They are only seen from 5 to 18 degrees preceding or trailing the Sun."

"They create bright flashes, perhaps lasting for a few seconds each due to the orientation of their outward pointing solar panels. Starlink satellites look like a miniature version of the monolith from “2001: A Space Odyssey”, where the large flat face of the monolith points towards Earth and the solar panel protrudes outward like the fin on the back of a Dimetrodon. These bright flashes are not directed towards Earth and are strikingly bright from orbit. The second photo shows the whole frame of this star trail photograph."

Starlink is a satellite internet constellation operated by Starlink Services, LLC, an international telecommunications provider that is a wholly owned subsidiary of American aerospace company SpaceX, providing coverage to over 100 countries and territories.

Airglow occurs when atoms and molecules in the 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. The phenomenon is similar to auroras, but where auroras are driven by high-energy particles originating from the solar wind, airglow is energized by ordinary, day-to-day solar radiation.

Unlike auroras, which are episodic and fleeting, airglow constantly shines throughout Earth’s atmosphere, and the result is a tenuous bubble of light that closely encases our entire planet. (Auroras, on the other hand, are usually constrained to Earth’s poles.) Just a tenth as bright as all the stars in the night sky, airglow is far more subdued than auroras, too dim to observe easily except in orbit or on the ground with clear, dark skies and a sensitive camera. However, it is a marker nevertheless of the dynamic region where Earth meets space . . .

Image details: Nikon Z9, Arri-Zeiss 15mm T1.8 master prime lens, 30 second exposures compiled into an effective 30 minute exposure, T1.8, ISO 200, assembled with Photoshop (levels, color, some spot tool).

Expedition 72 Updates:

https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/

Expedition 72 Crew
Station Commander: Suni Williams
Roscosmos (Russia): Alexey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, Aleksandr Gorbunov
NASA: Butch Wilmore, Don Pettit, Nick Hague

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.

Image Date: NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC)
Release Date: Nov. 15, 2024

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