NASA has shared a breath-taking video of Monday’s total solar eclipse, as viewed from the International Space Station. The solar eclipse swept across North America on Monday, leaving millions of viewers on the continent spellbound.
The eclipse’s path of totality stretched from Mazatlán, Mexico to Newfoundland, an area that crosses 15 US states and is home to 44 million people. Viewers were engulfed in darkness during the celestial phenomenon. Most people in North America, even those not in the direct path, got to witness a partial solar eclipse, weather permitting.
Astronauts onboard the International Space Station (ISS) also got to witness the solar eclipse. The ISS soared into the moon’s shadow during the eclipse, said NASA. “The windows on the cupola, the orbital outpost’s “window to the world,” were open and NASA Flight Engineers Matthew Dominick and Jeanette Epps were inside photographing and videotaping the Moon’s shadow on Earth, or umbra, beneath them,” said the American space agency.
Ever seen a total solar #eclipse from space?
Here is our astronauts’ view from the @Space_Station pic.twitter.com/2VrZ3Y1Fqz
— NASA (@NASA) April 8, 2024
The space station was orbiting 260 miles (418 km) above Canada as the moon’s shadow was moving from New York to Newfoundland. “The space station experienced a totality of about 90% during its flyover period,” NASA said.