Astronaut Alexander Gerst Posts An Amazing Time-Lapse Video Of Earth From Space

German astronaut Alexander Gerst has posted a time-lapse video of the Earth shot while aboard the International Space Station (ISS), and it’s spectacular.

Gerst spent six months on board the ISS working on the European Space Agency’s Blue Dot mission. While he was up there, he shot some amazing scenes of the Earth, capturing auroras, lit-up cities, lightning strikes, and even a hurricane. He also caught some amazing shots of space itself; the Milky Way, the ISS equipment (such as the Canada Arm extending and retracting or the solar panels moving to meet the Sun), and even the Soyuz capsule.

“Often while conducting scientific experiments or docking spacecraft Alexander would set cameras to automatically take pictures at regular intervals. Combining these images gives the timelapse effect seen in this video.”

Some amazing videos from space have been turning up on YouTube lately, including ancient footage from Apollo 12 and Apollo 15 that may or may not show a UFO and a front-row seat video of the Orion spacecraft reentering the Earth’s atmosphere.

But for sheer magnitude and awe, you can’t beat the views of the Earth you get from low-Earth orbit.

When not taking amazing pictures and videos, Gerst spent his 166 days aboard the ISS doing experiments, maintaining the ship as part of its six-member crew, and inspiring young scientists, according to his biography.

“Alexander was a geophysicist and volcanologist before he was chosen as an ESA astronaut in 2009. His scientific background was of great help performing the international experiments he ran during his 166-day stay on humankind’s weightless laboratory.”

What was your favorite part of Mr. Gerst’s video from space? Share in the Comments below.

[Image courtesy of: NASA]