NASA Shares Frozen Moonrise Image Snapped From Space

Shortly before Christmas, an image was captured from the International Space Station that shows the moon over a frozen winter landscape, offering a unique and somewhat stunning frosty perspective of the celestial body. The image was captured using a Nikon D5 digital camera using a 50mm lens by a member of the Expedition 61 crew.

The image above was captured on December 12, 2019, on a clear night featuring a full moon. Visible on the surface is Canada's Hudson Bay frozen over with ice and snow, as happens every year. The lowest portion of the image features Manitoba. Despite the dark sky from the vantage point of the International Space Station, the image was taken around 1 PM local time.

According to NASA, the image had the contrast improved; it was also cropped and some editing was used to remove lens artifacts. The camera is provided to astronauts by the Johnson Space Center's ISS Crew Earth Observations Facility and the Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit.

The ISS offers a unique perspective on the Earth, helping support experts on land. NASA points out that the Hudson Bay, once it is fully frozen, is an important habitat used by polar bears that are migrating across the ice until the summer melt starts. The ice starts forming in October.

This is one of a huge number of images captured from the International Space Station; as with other images captured by its various cameras and systems, NASA shares these images with the public through its website. The space agency highlights some of the best images on its Image of the Day page found here.