What does lightning look like from space? Astronauts on space station share stunning photos
But the natural phenomenon is one all but a few select individuals will ever have the chance to see from the vantage of 250 miles in orbit. Fortunately, a few astronauts over the years have been more than willing to generously share a glimpse of crashing lightning as seen from outer space.
And you better believe it looks nothing like what we're used to seeing from the ground.
The latest images of sky-splitting lightning came courtesy of two NASA astronauts residing aboard the International Space Station. In May, Nichole Ayers and Anne McClain posted photos on social media site X of lightning roiling far, far beneath them.
"This is what lightning looks like from the top down," McClain said in a post shared May 21.
Here's a closer look at just what they managed to capture from above Earth's atmosphere.
The images McClain and Ayers shared show electrostatic discharges – in other words, lightning – from above the clouds as they orbited in the International Space Station.
In Ayers' post on X, she said she first observed lightning May 1 while suited up for a spacewalk outside the orbital outpost. She then managed to capture a few photos the next day, which she shared May 5.
"I am so amazed by the view we have up here of our Earth's weather systems," Ayers posted.
While it was unclear what part of Earth the lightning was striking in Ayers' photos, McClain said her images were captured over Alabama and Georgia.
"Fast and furious, but also an incredible sight!" McClain said.
The photos not only reveal the chaotic beauty of lightning, but could provide valuable orbital data to scientists studying the phenomenon back on Earth.
Here's a look at some of the astronauts' photos:
The photos were captured at speeds of 120 frames per second, with the depicted flashes only taking up one frame. The technique was pioneered by veteran NASA astronaut Don Pettit, who is renowned for his astral photography.
Pettit, who had arrived in September 2024 for his third and most recent space station stint, departed April 19, 2025, with two cosmonauts before safely landing in Kazakhstan on his 70th birthday.
Ayers and McClain, who also recently made headlines for completing a rare all-female spacewalk, are among seven people living at the International Space Station.
The crew of Expedition 73 includes three Americans, three Russian cosmonauts and one Japanese spacefarer from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (Jaxa.)
McClain and Ayers are both part of a SpaceX mission known as Crew-10 that reached the space station in March 2025. Their arrival with JAXA astronaut Takuya Onishi and Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov paved the way for the NASA astronauts who crewed the doomed Boeing Starliner to depart with the Crew-9 mission.
Also at the station is NASA astronaut Jonny Kim, who reached the outpost in April 2025 with cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky.
Eric Lagatta is the Space Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at elagatta@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Astronauts on space station glimpse lightning from space: See photos
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