Northern Canada is, in our opinion, the best place on Earth to see the aurora borealis — but the operative words are “on Earth.” A recent video from the International Space Station proves that the view of the northern lights from space may be even more spectacular than the earthbound view.
The time-lapse video was filmed by astronaut Paolo Nespoli and shows the lights shimmering brilliantly over Canada’s north. Nespoli, who regularly posts incredible videos of the earth as seen from space over on his Twitter account, posted the video with the caption “A stunning aurora caught my eye… Its beauty is out of this world!” (Personally, we’d have gone with “auror-geous.”)
The lights, glimmering green, look in many ways similar to how they appear from the ground. But with no clouds to dull the effect, and given the space station’s unique perspective, this luminous display stretching over the curve of the atmosphere is the most epic view we can imagine.
Nespoli often posts photos of Earth from space, and has previously trained his camera on some amazing Canadian landscapes, including this spot where two Ontario rivers (the Mattagami and the Missinaibi) meet, surrounded by winter ice.
[Credit: Paolo Nespoli]Apparently, our country is just as beautiful from above the atmosphere as it is from on the ground.
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