This picture was taken during expedition 29. The Aurora is above the Tasman sea, outside of New Zealand. Expedition 29 began in 2011 and had a crew size of six. The launch was delayed due to failures on a re-supply vehicle. Even though the ISS is run by NASA, astronauts from all around the world occupy it. In this expedition astronauts have come from the USA, Russia, and Japan.[1][2][3]
Auroras happen because of solar wind. When charged particles hit the atmosphere it excites particles, which produces the Aurora. A lot of these particles come from sun-spots. These sunspots run on a solar cycle. The high of the solar cycle happened in 2013-2014 and we are now approaching the solar minimum.[4]
