As the festival of Diwali approaches, images of candles, colorful lights, and fireworks come to mind. During this celebration, people decorate their homes with light and rejoice by setting off fireworks. However, many wonder what our Earth looks like when viewed from space. Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukra presented a stunning view of Earth that gives the impression of fireworks lighting up the sky.
Shubhanshu Shukra shared a video taken from space on social media. The recording shows lightning flashing among the clouds on Earth. The sudden burst of light in the darkness is as impressive as artificial fireworks. He described this scene as 'nature's own fireworks.' Of particular note was that he published this video on the occasion of Diwali and wished people a Happy Dhanteras.
Sharing the video on Instagram, Shubhanshu Shukra explained that Diwali has always been his favorite festival. He loves the light, sparkle, and fireworks of this celebration. He recounted that while in space, he filmed this video while looking at Earth. It captured a lightning flash through the clouds, and from a space perspective, this sight appeared absolutely similar to fireworks. He noted that it was a very beautiful and unexpected spectacle that made him feel that even the Universe celebrates the festival of light in its own way. Therefore, he felt it was important to share this video with people on the occasion of Diwali.
Usually, we observe lightning in clouds from the Earth's surface. However, the picture looks completely different from space. When lightning occurs inside or between clouds, it generates bright light for a short time. Looking at this glow from the dark part of the Earth resembles a firecracker shot. The International Space Station (ISS) orbits at an altitude of about 400 kilometers above Earth. From there, astronauts see many sights—seas, mountains, cities, clouds, and weather phenomena that cannot be seen from the ground. Lightning flashes are one such magnificent sight. Nevertheless, the illumination shown in the video is a natural cloud lightning, not Diwali fireworks.
Shubhanshu Shukra is a Group Captain in the Indian Air Force. He became the first Indian to visit the International Space Station (ISS). Before him, Rakesh Sharma flew into space in 1984. Thus, Shubhanshu became the second Indian in space. He began his space mission on June 25, 2025, as part of the Axiom-4 mission. Astronauts from America, Poland, and Hungary also participated in this mission. Shubhanshu spent about two weeks on the International Space Station. During this time, he conducted various scientific experiments and shared beautiful photos and videos of Earth from space.
This is not the first time Shubhanshu Shukra has shown special views of Earth from space. Previously, he had already published videos of the lighting of India and its cities from space. He mentioned that at night, India looks like a shining jewel. The lights of cities such as Pune, Bangalore, and Hyderabad are visible from afar, like stars. His new video once again prompted people to think about how beautiful our Earth is when viewed from space. The video, published for Diwali, demonstrates that the colorful spectacle of light is created not only by humans but also by nature itself putting on its own 'fireworks' every day.
