NASA Unveils Stunning Visuals of a Rare Celestial Phenomenon: Astronauts' Observations from the Space Station Window
High above the clouds, where commercial flights don't venture and conventional satellites can't reach, scientists are uncovering the mysteries of transient luminous events (TLEs). These captivating phenomena include red sprites, blue jets, and ELVES—brief, high-altitude bursts of light triggered by lightning that occur far above thunderclouds. From the vantage point of the International Space Station (ISS), astronauts are now documenting these electrical discharges with unprecedented precision.
Instruments installed outside the station are capturing high-speed images and radiation measurements, offering scientists fresh insights into the impact of these flashes on Earth's atmosphere, long-distance radio communications, and even climate processes. The renewed focus on storm-generated upper-atmospheric electricity is revolutionizing how researchers understand severe weather systems. By observing lightning activity from orbit, space agencies are opening a new frontier in atmospheric research, revealing that storm energy often extends far beyond the visible storm clouds.
Space-based lightning detectors, such as the ESA's Atmosphere–Space Interactions Monitor (ASIM), play a pivotal role in observing upper-atmospheric lightning. Installed on the ISS in 2018, ASIM, built by Danish aerospace firm Terma and operated from a control center in Belgium, detects light, ultraviolet radiation, and X-rays from rare electrical phenomena occurring between 20 and 100 kilometers above Earth's surface. Its position outside the station enables it to record events above large thunderstorm systems, particularly in equatorial regions.
ASIM's instruments, including high-speed photometers and X-ray sensors, identify and record brief discharges like ELVES, which appear as large, expanding rings of light, and red sprites, which resemble vertical bursts resembling jellyfish. Reporting by Earth.com noted that ASIM confirmed lightning-like discharges can emit enough electromagnetic energy to reach the ionosphere, the charged layer of the atmosphere that supports long-range radio communication. These vertical pulses, triggered by storm activity, may influence how radio signals travel across continents, potentially disrupting aviation, naval, and military communications systems.
One notable observation involved a blue jet—a bright electrical discharge rising from a thundercloud into the stratosphere. Captured at an estimated altitude of 40 kilometers, it was documented with supporting ground-based instruments and visual confirmation from the ISS. In addition to optical phenomena, storm systems sometimes generate intense pulses of ionizing radiation called terrestrial gamma-ray flashes (TGFs). These gamma-ray bursts last just milliseconds but can expose aircraft passengers and sensitive equipment to radiation doses comparable to a chest X-ray.
To improve detection of these bursts, the UAE and Bahrain jointly developed the Light-1 CubeSat. The nanosatellite was launched to the ISS in December 2021 via a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and deployed into orbit from JAXA’s Kibo module in February 2022. Light-1 uses scintillating crystals to detect gamma rays, which are then amplified by photomultiplier tubes and processed by onboard electronics. Data is transmitted to three ground stations across Lithuania, Denmark, and the UAE via X-band and UHF frequencies.
During its initial hours of operation, Light-1 recorded nearly 50 gamma-ray flashes above storm regions. Its data are now contributing to global mapping of TGF activity and helping researchers better understand the spatial distribution of storm-driven radiation events. Insights from this project are particularly relevant to flight safety and space weather modeling. Mission updates published on the official Light-1 project page highlight its role in advancing regional and international atmospheric science capabilities.
Furthermore, astronauts are utilizing ultra-sensitive imaging devices as part of the THOR-DAVIS experiment. This project tests a neuromorphic camera—a sensor that captures data only when light levels change at individual pixels. The design allows for extremely high frame rates, up to 100,000 frames per second, without producing excessive data volumes. The camera system consists of a Davis 346 neuromorphic unit mounted on a Nikon D5 DSLR and is operated using an AstroPi controller based on the Raspberry Pi platform. It was tested by Danish ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen during a mission aboard the ISS.
Technical details from a European Geosciences Union abstract explain how the instrument records lightning activity at the top of clouds and into the stratosphere. Its high dynamic range—around 120 decibels—allows it to capture both faint corona discharges and intense electric pulses without saturation. The collected footage helps researchers evaluate real-world atmospheric discharges against lab-based plasma models, potentially leading to more accurate simulations of lightning formation and improved forecasting tools for power grid protection and satellite operations.
