This is what the ‘twilight dimension’ looks like, according to NASA astronaut: “We don’t see day or night”

From the International Space Station (ISS), a project created between different agencies that includes NASA, astronaut Don Pettit
captured images that reveal the mysteries of what he calls the “twilight dimension” of Earth’s orbit. The ISS serves as a microgravity research laboratory, where studies are carried out in various fields such as astrobiology, astronomy, meteorology and physics.

Donald R. Pettit, a NASA astronaut currently aboard the ISS, has shared a series of photographs that offer a privileged view of what he calls the “twilight or unknown zone” from Earth’s orbit, in English it is called Twilight Zone, which is reminiscent of the 1960s television series with the same name.

This is what the “twilight dimension” looks like

This region, according to information shared by NASA, It is also known as the terminator line, it is where day and night meet in a smooth transition but visible from space. The international collaboration project in which Pettit is involved brings together five important space agencies that make these discoveries possible: NASA (United States), Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA (Japan), ESA (Europe) and CSA (Canada)

“We live in the unknown dimension. Our orbit in @Space_Station
is now aligned with the day and night shadow of the Earth, so we do not see the entire day or night. This is the best time to photograph clouds with low angle lighting,” was what Don Pettit said in the trill of X.

(Also read: NASA discovers a city buried under snow in Greenland)

According to the astronaut, this is the ideal time to capture photographs of clouds and other atmospheric phenomena, since low and oblique light highlights details that would otherwise go unnoticed.

The images he shared show a striking contrast between the clarity of day and the darkness of night, revealing a perspective that only astronauts can experience. In addition, Pettit has photographed stars and satellites from the ISS on other occasions, using long exposures. to create images that show stars as luminous arcs and satellites as straight lines.

Who is Don Pettit?

Don Pettit is no stranger to exploring the unknown. With more than 370 days in space and more than 13 hours of spacewalks accumulated throughout his career, this chemical engineer and NASA veteran He has dedicated much of his life to unraveling the mysteries of the cosmos.

X: @astro_Pettit

Selected as an astronaut in 1996, Pettit has participated in key missions such as Expedition 6, where he spent more than five months aboard the ISS conducting scientific experiments, and Expedition 30/31, where he used the station’s robotic arm to capture the first commercial cargo spacecraft, SpaceX Dragon. Currently, it is part of Expedition 72, where it continues to carry out scientific research while orbiting our planet at more than 400 kilometers high.

The other unknown dimension is in the ocean

As Pettit explores space, oceanographer Ken Buesseler and his team of scientists have been investigating an equally unknown world beneath the waves: the ocean’s twilight zone. Located between the sunlit surface and the dark depths, this region is a critical ecosystem that regulates Earth’s climate.

“There is a fifth dimension beyond what man knows. It is the intermediate point between light and shadow. It is an area we call the Twilight Zone,” This is what the NASA team said.

WHOI/Ken Buesseler/NASA

Phytoplankton, microscopic organisms that convert carbon dioxide into organic matter through photosynthesis, form the base of the food chain in the ocean. This matter is consumed by zooplankton and other marine animals, many of which make a daily migration to the surface to feed and return to the twilight zone at dawn. This massive movement constitutes the largest animal migration on the planet, although it often goes unnoticed.

A fascinating feature of this area is “marine snow”, a cascade of organic particles that transport carbon from the surface to the depths of the ocean. This process plays an essential role in removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, storing it for centuries and helping to mitigate climate change.