International Space Station – Norfolk Island View

There were exciting posts on Facebook this week from the International Space Station, ISS live feed photos. The images were taken above Norfolk Island and shared by Giles Stevens Earth from Space posting fantastic images from 16 November 2022 at 7:15am local time. These morning images were taken with a break in the clouds showed Norfolk Island with clear skies, as a speck in the South Pacific Ocean.

In addition to the images showing Norfolk Island were also NASA astronauts on their spacewalk debut. Expedition 68, Astronauts, Flight Engineers Frank Rubio and Josh Cassada performed an EVA spacewalk 400 km (250 miles) directly above Norfolk Island. The two astronauts were working on the installation for a pair of Rollout Solar Arrays on the International Space Station. This preparation is for an orbiting laboratory for future solar power upgrades that will be installed later in the year.

Imagine that during the time when the ISS passed over Norfolk Island the residents here on Norfolk Island were the closest humans to the Astronauts aboard the Space Station.

Check out this Facebook link to see more of the images, this week there were also views of Pitt Island, which is part of Chatham Island and Oeno, part of the Pitcairn Islands group of Islands.

Giles StevensEarth from Space - ISS live feed photos

https://www.facebook.com/groups/791652331777517/

I started following the Earth from Space Facebook page about a year ago when Deanne Ryan shared images of this this amazing link. It was interesting to see this week when Deanne shared a photograph, she took on 16 November during the early morning, Giles Stevens replied describing that the image from space showed the same clouds that were in her photo.

I have read information from NASA, that the ISS orbits Earth at an average altitude of approximately 250 miles. The International Space Station travels at 28,000 km p/hour, or 17,500 mph which is about 7.66 km p/sec or 5 miles per second. This means it orbits Earth every 90 minutes.

The International Space Station (ISS) is the largest modular space station currently in low Earth orbit. It is a multinational collaborative project involving five participating space agencies: NASA, Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA (Japan), ESA (Europe), and CSA (Canada). The ownership and use of the space station is established by intergovernmental treaties and agreements. The station serves as a microgravity and space environment research laboratory in which scientific research is conducted in astrobiology, astronomy, meteorology, physics, and other fields. The ISS is suited for testing the spacecraft systems and equipment required for possible future long-duration missions to the Moon and Mars.

Here are a few of the images shared on Facebook this week and details of the path the ISS travelled as it flew above Norfolk Island

Betty Matthews

November 2022