This picture of annular solar eclipse snapped from 260 miles above Earth is quite riveting

Last weekend's solar eclipse was a feast for the eyes of many around the globe. But, as it turns out, not all skywatchers who marvelled at the solar eclipse were on this planet. One was up above the Earth.

NASA has released a picture of the October 14solar eclipse, that was clicked by an astronaut from a very unique vantage point.

The solar eclipse

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Along a narrow pathway from the Oregon coast to Central and South America, skygazers witnessed an annular solar eclipse, where the moon blocked all of the sun except for a thin band, a luminous "ring of fire".

To the rest of us, a partial eclipse was visible, one that looked like the moon taking a nibble out of the sun.

This was exactly what was seen by the crew aboard the International Space Station (ISS), and one of the astronauts clicked a celestial picture of it from his extraordinary viewpoint in space.

Celestial picture

The picture was captured by NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, a member of the ISS crew since August.

Moghbeli managed to capture a remarkable photo from the ISS, and it was then shared by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center.

The stunning photo depicts the annular eclipse as viewed from the ISS, approximately 260 miles above Earth.

The tweet highlighted the astronauts' unique vantage point during the celestial event.

"The crew aboard the @Space_Station watched the annular solar eclipse on Oct. 14, from the best seat in the house (260 miles above Earth). As the moon passed in front of the sun, Expedition 70 Flight Engineer Jasmin Moghbeli captured this photo," said the post, while prompting followers to share their own viewing experiences.

How annual solar eclipses happen

Annular solar eclipses happen due to the moon's slightly elliptical orbit, and occur when the moon, sun, and Earth align perfectly, but the moon is positioned farthest from Earth, which then results in the solar disk being blocked, albeit incompletely.

(With inputs from agencies)

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