What a rocket launch looks like from the ISS

We can probably find many pictures of rocket launches that were captured from the ground, but yesterday astronaut Jeff Williams showed us what a rocket launch looks like from 249 miles above Earth’s surface.

The Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) launched the Progress MS-2/63P re-supply mission to the International Space Station on Thursday. The mission is the first of three Russian launches that will take place this year.

The‬ launch occurred about five minutes before the ISS passed over Baikonur and just a minute before sunset which allowed the astronaut to capture the view from way up high.

According to Williams’ Facebook post:

“We saw the flash of 3rd stage ignition and the subsequent 3rd stage was spectacular. Here are some of the best shots taken from the International Space Station. (note the one taken just after the moment of engine cutoff!) Spectacular!…and fresh fruit is on the way!!”