Rocky Mountain (very) high

Astronaut André Kuipers captures the Dragon capsule approaching the International Space Station over Vancouver Island. A must-see!

Written byPhil Plait
| 1 min read
Google NewsGoogle News Preferred Source

Newsletter

Sign up for our email newsletter for the latest science news

Sign Up

I don't have a lot to add to this incredible picture taken by astronaut André Kuipers of the Dragon capsule as it approached the International Space Station on May 25:

[Click to embiggen.] Isn't that spectacular? Actually, I will add something: the caption for this post indicates it's over the Rocky Mountains. I got excited for a second, thinking maybe it was near my neck of the woods. But then I realized the icy mountaintops look nothing like they do here in Boulder. I checked anyway, and on Wolfram Alpha I found the picture was taken over Vancouver Island, which is where my friend Fraser Cain from Universe Today lives! Huh. Small planet.

[P.S. Speaking of Fraser, I'll be doing a live video star party with him, Pamela Gay, and many others for the Transit of Venus Tuesday. We have telescopes lined up all over the world to view this last-chance-in-a-lifetime event! Stay tuned for more info, but I'll have the chat embedded here on the blog when the time comes.]

Image credit: ESA/NASA


Related Posts: - When a Dragon mated the space station - Update: the Dragon capsule as seen by the ISS - SpaceX Dragon on its way to the ISS! - Dragon hunting above, dragon hunting below

Meet the Author

Related Topics

Stay Curious

JoinOur List

Sign up for our weekly science updates

View our Privacy Policy

SubscribeTo The Magazine

Save up to 40% off the cover price when you subscribe to Discover magazine.

Subscribe