British astronaut Tim Peake has been dazzling his Twitter followers with some spectacular shots of Earth and beyond during his stay aboard the International Space Station (ISS).
A photo he snapped on Sunday, however, was spectacularly photobombed by SpaceX’s Dragon capsule, which drifted into view just as Peake was about to grab a shot of Dubai’s famous Palm Islands.
“I’ve been waiting to get a pic of The Palms, Dubai & then this happened just prior to capture :) #LuckyDay,” the astronaut tweeted.
I’ve been waiting to get a pic of The Palms, Dubai & then this happened just prior to capture :) #LuckyDay pic.twitter.com/AE5btzQSpE
— Tim Peake (@astro_timpeake) April 10, 2016
A short while later he posted an image of the Palms “minus the #Dragon photobomb.”
Minus the #Dragon photobomb this time… pic.twitter.com/ZDxu60Yg2w
— Tim Peake (@astro_timpeake) April 10, 2016
The Dragon capsule’s consignment for the space station’s six-person crew included vital supplies, equipment for science experiments, and a special “inflatable room” that you can read more about here.
Its arrival marked the first time for two U.S. commercial spacecraft to be connected to the ISS at the same time, Space.com reported. The other, Orbital ATK’s Cygnus cargo carrier, arrived at the station on March 26.
The ISS is now playing host to six visiting spacecraft – two U.S. and four Russian – equaling a record set back in 2011.
SpaceX’s Dragon capsule arrived at the ISS two days after its launch vehicle, the Falcon 9, made history by nailing its first-ever sea-based barge landing. The space company achieved the feat on its fifth attempt, with earlier efforts ending with the rocket toppling over and exploding seconds after touchdown.
SpaceX’s long-term ambition is to create a reliable and reusable rocket system aimed at drastically reducing the cost of space missions, whether for space tourism, resupply missions to the ISS, or journeys into deep space.
