Satellite snaps rare birds-eye view of the ISS | Space photo of the day for Nov. 12, 2026
A commercial satellite has spotted the International Space Station, giving us a unique view of the orbiting lab from above.
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A commercial satellite has spotted the International Space Station (ISS), giving us a unique view of the orbiting lab from above.
What is it?Most of the time, when we see the ISS, it is from down here on Earth or from the viewpoint of the astronauts onboard, peering out the windows at the station's limbs, solar arrays and instruments.
But in this snapshot, which was posted on X on Nov. 9 by the Australian company HEO, we can see the station stretched out in all its glory.
HEO specializes in using satellites in low Earth orbit to capture images of other spacecraft, though longer-term the company aims to capture observations far out into the solar system. HEO doesn't build the satellites that take these photos; rather, the company's software tasks the spacecraft to image targets as they come into range.
Taken from Space.com's own summary of the story.
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