Beautiful Images from STS-123 Shuttle Mission
There have been a lot of beautiful images from the current NASA space shuttle mission, STS-123 at the International Space Station (ISS).
The primary mission objectives include rotating an expedition crew member, installing the first section of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s Kibo laboratory and the Canadian Space Agency’s two-armed robotic system, Dextre.
Against a black sky, the Space Shuttle Endeavour and its seven-member STS-123 crew head toward Earth-orbit and a scheduled link-up with the International Space Station (ISS).
A colourful view of airglow layers at Earth’s horizon photographed by a STS-123 crewmember on the Space Shuttle Endeavour while docked with the ISS.
Astronaut Robert L. Behnken, STS-123 mission specialist, participates in the extravehicular activity (EVA) (or spacewalk) as construction and maintenance continue on the International Space Station. The blackness of space and Earth’s horizon provide the backdrop for the scene.
Pictured here are Dextre (centre), also known as the Special Purpose Dextrous Manipulator (SPDM), the solar array panels (right) and a section of a station truss (left). A blue and white Earth provides the backdrop for the scene.
Framed by components of the International Space Station, a full moon is visible in this view above Earth’s horizon and airglow.
Backdropped by a blue and white part of Earth, the International Space Station is seen from Space Shuttle Endeavour as the two spacecraft begin their relative separation.
More images from STS-123 mission here.
My Dark Sky 