Ever wondered what Earth looks like during a solar eclipse? It’s kind of a difficult picture to imagine given that seeing our planet from space isn’t a perspective many of us are familiar with. But thanks to the Mir 27 Russian space station we can bypass our imaginations and see that incredible sight in a photo.
The shadow of the Moon can be seen darkening part of Earth. This shadow moved across the Earth at nearly 2000 kilometers per hour. Only observers near the center of the dark circle see a total solar eclipse – others see a partial eclipse where only part of the Sun appears blocked by the Moon. This spectacular picture of the 1999 August 11 solar eclipse was one of the last ever taken from the Mir space station. The two bright spots that appear on the upper left are possibly Jupiter and Saturn, although this has yet to be proven. Mir was deorbited in a controlled re-entry in 2001.
via apod.nasa.gov
