Astronaut Captures Earth and Stars from Space Station

Floating 261 miles above the India-Pakistan border, NASA astronaut Chris Williams captured a photograph that spans from Earth to the distant stars.

The long-exposure image shows city lights far below streaking past as the International Space Station races around our planet at 17,500 mph. Behind those lights, stars create circular trails across the cosmos as the station rotates to keep Earth-facing.

Williams snapped the photo during the middle of the night local time as the ISS orbited overhead. The station completes a full lap around Earth every 90 minutes, giving astronauts 16 sunrises and sunsets every day.

In the foreground, hardware from three space agencies shares the frame. Northrop Grumman's Cygnus-23 cargo craft sits docked to the right, carrying 11,000 pounds of supplies delivered in September 2025.

Japan's HTV-X1 cargo vehicle appears at the top, connected to the station's Harmony module. The Canadian robotic arm Canadarm2 stretches nearby, ready to assist with station operations.

Why This Inspires

The photo captures something remarkable about human achievement. While we often focus on divisions down on Earth, above our atmosphere, spacecraft from the United States, Japan, and Canada work side by side as part of humanity's shared home in space.

The ISS has hosted astronauts from 20 countries since 2000, proving that when we look up instead of at our borders, we can build something extraordinary together. Every supply delivery, every photograph, every experiment conducted aboard the station represents international cooperation at its finest.

The circular star trails remind us of our place in the universe, while the bright city lights below show the ingenuity of billions of people creating their own light in the darkness.

This single photograph connects three layers of human experience: our homes on Earth, our outpost in orbit, and our endless curiosity about the stars beyond.