Astrophotographer Captures 'Once-In-A-Lifetime' Image Of Spacewalking Astronauts, From Earth

Sebastian Voltmer, an astrophotographer from Germany, spotted the Expedition 66 astronauts performing a spacewalk, when the ISS appeared shortly after sunset in the bright evening sky over Germany.

New Delhi: An astrophotographer recently captured an image of two spacewalking astronauts, from Earth. 

NASA astronaut Raja Chari and European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Matthias Maurer performed an extravehicular activity (EVA) on March 23, spending nearly seven hours outside the International Space Station (ISS). Sebastian Voltmer, an astrophotographer from Germany, spotted the Expedition 66 astronauts performing a spacewalk, when the orbital laboratory appeared shortly after sunset in the bright evening sky over Germany. He captured a picture of the astronauts through his C11 EdgeHD telescope from the hometown of Maurer.

"I feel like I just made a once-in-a-lifetime image," Voltmer wrote in a Facebook post.

“This image of the ISS pass was taken on March 23, 2022 under good seeing conditions through my C11 EdgeHD telescope from the hometown of ESA astronaut Dr. Matthias Maurer,” Voltmer further said.

The astrophotographer also said that the docked SpaceX Dragon capsule, with which the astronauts of Crew-3 flew to the ISS, is clearly visible. He said that three years ago, he got to know Maurer at SpaceStudio in Nohfelden, Germany, which is located near Matthias’ hometown. 

Voltmer wrote on Twitter that Maurer was just “climbing” at the moment when he witnessed the spacewalk. The astrophotographer also said that Canadarm2, the rod-shaped structure seen in the picture, is the robot arm.  

Voltmer first published an initial photo for the local press in Germany, highlighting where Maurer appeared on the ISS, according to the post. He said that he released that version right away on the internet, which went viral, while he continued to work on the final image version with both highlighted astronauts. 

Photographer Phillip Smith contacted Voltmer two days after the spacewalk happened. It was Smith who told Voltmer that Chari is detectable in the picture, the post stated. 

Smith noticed Chari on the robotic arm “Canadarm2”, and created a combination picture with an insert from the NASA livestream. 

On Sunday, Voltmer posted the combination picture on Twitter, in which the positions of both astronauts have been pointed out. 

“It's probably the first ground based picture showing two spacewalkers on the ISS at the same time,” Voltmer wrote. 

Chari and Matthias, along with NASA astronauts Thomas Marshburn and Kayla Barron, reached the ISS in November last year, aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon Endurance spacecraft, as part of the NASA SpaceX Crew-3 mission. Maurer officially became the 600th person in space.