Astronauts aboard the ISS can visually observe active volcanic lava flows at night.
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Published reports and astronaut photographs confirm that crew members aboard the International Space Station can visually observe and capture active volcanic lava flows glowing at night.
Mount Etna’s Fiery Eruptions Are Visible From Space Skip to main content
Mount Etna's glowing lava flow can be spotted at bottom left. ESA/NASA
Since it began rumbling in February, Italy’s Mount Etna has been periodically erupting with forceful bursts of lava. These eruptions are so powerful, in fact, that they are visible some 250 miles above the Earth.
As Matt Wall reports for Space, astronaut Thomas Pesquet captured an image of Mount Etna from his perch inside the International Space Station. Pesquet, who is an astronaut with the European Space Agency, posted the image to Twitter on Tuesday. “The volcano is currently erupting,” he wrote, “and the molten lava is visible from space, at night!”
In the right-hand corner of the image, you can see a cluster of lights from the city of Catania, which is located near Mount Etna. The left-hand corner of the image is dark, with the exception of a few glowing streaks. These streaks, Pesquet explained in his Twitter post, are rivers of lava slithering down the mountain.
A snapshot of an earlier eruption was captured by the European Space Agency’s Copernicus Sentinel-2A satellite on March 16—the same day that 10 people were injured by an
Cumbre Vieja Lights Up the Night - NASA Science
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An astronaut photograph shows the proximity of a volcanic eruption to nearby cities on the Spanish island of La Palma.
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A volcanic eruption on La Palma in the Canary Islands has destroyed hundreds of homes and led thousands of people to evacuate. The proximity of the lava to developed areas is especially apparent in this photograph, shot with a handheld camera on September 22, 2021, by an astronaut onboard the International Space Station (ISS).
The eruption began on September 19 from fissures on the western flanks of Cumbre Vieja, an elongated volcanic range spanning the southern two-thirds of the island. Observers reported an initial explosion that day that lofted ash and gas thousands of feet into the air.
Pulsating fountains of lava have since been feeding lava flows running downslope, engulfing trees, banana plantations, homes, and infrastructure. According to news reports, more than 5,000 people evacuated as lava flows threatened neighborhoods in El Paso, Los Llanos de Aridan
Astronauts capture volcanoes’ glowing lava from space station - The Washington Post
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# Astronauts capture volcanoes’ glowing lava from space station
By[Angela Fritz](https://www.washingtonpost.com/people/angela-fritz/?itid=ai_top_fritzam)
August 14, 2014 at 1:02 p.m. EDT
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One of the Expedition 40 crew members aboard the International Space Station photographed this oblique night image of almost the entire countries of Italy on July 26, 2014. (NASA)
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Red, glowing lava has been spattering and oozing from Mount Etna over the past few days, and International Space Station astronauts didn’t miss the opportunity to capture its likeness fro
# Can ISS astronauts see the lava from the Kilauea volcano at night?
Tags: iss, low-earth-orbit, photography, earth-observation
- Score: 9
- Views: 612
- Answers: 2
- Answered: yes
- Asked by: user12102
- Asked: 2018-05-28
- Site: space
## Question
The google news said "Lava from the Kilauea volcano can be seen from space" but it just links to the YouTube video of the same name. The screen shot of the video below shows a small ESA credit at the top left. If it's a multispectral image it may include infrared wavelengths where lava will be much brighter.
I was wondering, can ISS astronauts see the lava from the Kilauea volcano at night glowing red? If not, is it because they haven't passed over Hawaii recently, or is it not big or bright enough in visible wavelengths? I wonder if they have binoculars, or something with a large f/no.
Also curious if any of them have taken any photos at night...
## Answers
### Answer by Hobbes (score: 10 [ACCEPTED])
This is a photo of Kilauea taken from the ISS, by Drew Feustel:
I can't see any obvious lava.
It is possible to see hot lava from the ISS. Here's a nighttime photo of an eruption of the Etna (in March 2017), which does show a
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