Check out this out-of-this-world image of the International Space Station passing in front of the moon
posted Friday, March 8, 2013 at 7:09 PM EDT
The vastness of space can make you feel really, really small. For some of that perspective, check out this incredible photograph by amateur astronomer Mariano Ribas of the International Space Station (ISS) passing in front of the moon. Yes, the ISS is that little bright, satellite-looking speck on the right.
Ribas captured the image on March 5th from Argentina. "For the first time in my life, just 90 minutes before sunrise in Buenos Aires, I had a very good chance to see and photograph from my home the International Space Station (ISS) passing exactly in front the Moon," Ribas told Spaceweather.com.
According to Spaceweather.com, lunar transits of the ISS happen frequently but last for only a split second. Or, in other words, Ribas' timing had to be dead on and it was. The image is actually a composite of two shots captured of the ISS on either side of the Mare Imbrium ("Sea of Rains") on the moon.
Ribas shot the images with a 10-megapixel Canon Rebel XTi attached to a 12-inch telescope. "It was an extraordinary experience," he said.
See a bigger version of the photo here.