Here’s What The Solar Eclipse Looked Like From Space

As they orbited the earth, a satellite and an astronaut captured another side of the sun’s disappearing act

(ESA/ROB)

By Erin Blakemore

smithsonian.com
March 20, 2015

Friday morning’s solar eclipse was visible to much of Europe. But there was another place with great views and a slightly different perspective—space.

The European Space Agency’s Proba-2 minisatellite captured the eclipse from orbit using its SWAP camera, which combines an extreme ultraviolet telescope and high-tech pixel sensor technology to observe the sun and its corona.

Meanwhile, astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti spotted the eclipse from the International Space Station:

Orbital sunrise and the #SolarEclipse... could it go any better?/ (IT) Alba ed eclissi... potrebbe andare meglio? pic.twitter.com/BpneQwvY9i
— Sam Cristoforetti (@AstroSamantha) March 20, 2015

I think this is it: the umbra. Looking aft on our flightpath around maximum obscuration time. #SolarEclipse pic.twitter.com/rYz7UTpHLv
— Sam Cristoforetti (@AstroSamantha) March 20, 2015

These rare glimpses of a solar eclipse from space are only fitting for a rare astronomical event. The solar eclipse actually combined three celestial events: a total eclipse, a supermoon, and the spring equinox.