Gallery | Top Space Pix 2011 | Endeavour docked to the ISS... seen from the ground!
A lot of people aren't aware that the International Space Station is easily visible to the naked eye when it passes overhead; it's actually the fourth brightest object in the sky (after the Sun, Moon, and Venus). But you can go further than that; with a good telescope and some preparation you can see structure on it, since it's about 100 meters across, the size of a football field. But astrophotographers Thierry Legault and Emmanueal Rietsch went further still, capturing these amazing images of the ISS with Endeavour docked to it! The detail is astonishing; Endeavour is clearly visible along with the station's solar panels and various accouterments. It's hard to believe these were taken from the ground with a relatively small telescope, but they were. Thierry has a gift for timing and prep work... check out the next picture in the series to see what I mean.
[Note: Thierry and Emmanuel also got shots of Discovery mission spacewalk, showing the astronaut on the ISS!]
Image credit: Thierry Legault and Emmanuel Rietsch
[Note: Thierry and Emmanuel also got shots of Discovery mission spacewalk, showing the astronaut on the ISS!]
Image credit: Thierry Legault and Emmanuel Rietsch
