NASA astronaut challenges netizens to spot Mt. Everest in THIS image captured from the ISS

Astronauts inhabiting the International Space Station (ISS) unarguably enjoy the most intriguing views from the orbiting laboratory which circles the Earth several times a day. All of the current seven members of the ISS often share what they see with us humans on the ground and needless to say, each of their shared photographs is priceless. NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei, who arrived at the Space station in April 2021 has shared one such priceless picture but with a challenge.

As hinted by Vande Hei in the tweet above, this image was captured when the space station was crossing Mount Everest nearly 400 kilometres above the Earth. "My New Year’s resolution is to get outside as much as possible. Well, after I land that is. Can you find Mt. Everest in this photo?," the astronaut's tweet read. Many netizens were quick to take the challenge and some of them were able to accurately spot Everest in this deceiving photograph. As you can see, even spotting Everest from such a distance is nearly impossible as the entire mountain range looks no less than the roots of a tree.  

Although if you look close enough, you too would be able to spot the tallest mountain on the planet located right in the middle of the photograph. The Twitterati was generous enough to mark Everest out for everyone to see whereas some praised Vande Hei for the work he has been doing in Space. 

"Not much of a challenge for you, is it, Mark? You’ve climbed much higher than Everest. Not all hero’s wear a cape or hire a Sherpa. You are amazing, truly. Love you and what your are doing. Be safe. We love you so much!" wrote one user. "Great resolution. It is so important to connect with nature whenever possible," wrote another.

Vande Hei's launch to the ISS

The NASA astronaut's stay aboard the ISS began in early April last year when he launched aboard a Soyuz MS-18 along with two Russian cosmonauts Oleg Novitsky and Pyotr Dubrov. The veteran astronaut is also famous for growing the first chilli pepper in Space which was also the longest plant experiment ever conducted on the space station. 

Image: Twitter/@Astro_Sabot