NASA astronaut photographs SpaceX's private Polaris Dawn capsule reentry from ISS (photo)

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a bright light on earth circled by red, surrounded by darkness, in a picture taken from space

The Polaris Dawn re-entry of Sept. 15, 2024 captured by NASA astronaut Don Pettit, on the International Space Station. (Image credit: NASA)

An epic picture of Polaris Dawn's nighttime reentry has been beamed to Earth from space.

NASA astronaut Don Pettit caught the conclusion of Polaris Dawn, a private space mission that included the first-ever commercial spacewalk, during its SpaceX Dragon spacecraft's return to Earth before dawn on Sunday (Sept. 15).

"In addition to the multi-colored entry trail over Florida, the basic cone shape of the Dragon capsule can be seen," Pettit wrote on X, formerly Twitter, Sunday afternoon about his picture taken from the International Space Station (ISS).

Pettit, who launched to the ISS on his fourth space mission on Sept. 11, is known for his dramatic pictures of star trails and other space phenomena when he is on orbit. He obtained the imagery from the cupola, a wraparound window set on the ISS that points at Earth.

"We've got a number of new lenses on orbit that are optimized for nighttime imagery. I'm really looking forward to getting back on station and taking nighttime imagery to a new level," Pettit told Space.com in a pre-launch interview.

His other crew members were excited to see Pettit at work, as fellow NASA astronaut Matthew Dominick noted on X. "So many of us were packed into the cupola this morning to watch Polaris Dawn come back to Earth. It was fun watching [him] make this shot happen amongst five human bodies jammed in the cupola," Dominick said.

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"Actually," Dominick added, "I think having lots of folks jammed in helped him stabilize his body and thus the camera for the shot."

Polaris Dawn, the second mission funded by billionaire Jared Isaacman, launched on a on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket early Tuesday (Sept. 10) from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Pettit captured the mission's conclusion after five days in space.

Isaacman commanded Polaris Dawn his second space effort after funding and flying SpaceX's Inspiration4 in 2021. Also on board Polaris Dawn were mission pilot and Isaacman business associate Scott "Kidd" Poteet, as well as SpaceX engineers Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon.

Aside from Isaacman and Gillis working outside the capsule during the first commercial spacewalk, the mission's peak altitude of 870 miles (1,400 km) from Earth was farther than any crewed spacecraft since the moonbound Apollo 17 in 1972.

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Elizabeth Howell (she/her), Ph.D., is a staff writer in the spaceflight channel since 2022 covering diversity, education and gaming as well. She was contributing writer for Space.com for 10 years before joining full-time. Elizabeth's reporting includes multiple exclusives with the White House and Office of the Vice-President of the United States, an exclusive conversation with aspiring space tourist (and NSYNC bassist) Lance Bass, speaking several times with the International Space Station, witnessing five human spaceflight launches on two continents, flying parabolic, working inside a spacesuit, and participating in a simulated Mars mission. Her latest book, "Why Am I Taller?", is co-written with astronaut Dave Williams. Elizabeth holds a Ph.D. and M.Sc. in Space Studies from the University of North Dakota, a Bachelor of Journalism from Canada's Carleton University and a Bachelor of History from Canada's Athabasca University. Elizabeth is also a post-secondary instructor in communications and science at several institutions since 2015; her experience includes developing and teaching an astronomy course at Canada's Algonquin College (with Indigenous content as well) to more than 1,000 students since 2020. Elizabeth first got interested in space after watching the movie Apollo 13 in 1996, and still wants to be an astronaut someday. Mastodon: https://qoto.org/@howellspace

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