Astronauts from the International Space Station have opened up about the horrifying moments they have witnessed bombs lighting up the earth below in Ukraine.
It comes after weeks if shelling on Ukrainian cities by Russian forces, with the latest reports revealing hundreds of civilians have died in barbaric attacks in the city of Bucha.
As Amnesty International call for a war crime investigations after gathering stories from civilians caught in the horror on the ground, those hundreds of miles from the surface of the earth have spoken about the effect of witnessing such atrocities from space can have.
Col Terry Virts, former Commander of the International Space Centre said he never expected to look down on earth to see Ukraine being bombed during the Russian invasion of Crimea.
He revealed how devastating it was to see, knowing hundreds of people are dying on the earth below.
He told The Times : "People always say astronauts don't see borders. The reality is I did see borders and I saw bombs going off in Ukraine.
"You can actually see politics from space.
"My last mission was right in the middle of a bad time between the west and Russia.
"I remember one winter night in 2015, looking down through the Russian window and the service module over Eastern Ukraine and you could see bombs going off.
"They were like red flashes. it was so profound to be looking at people being killed on earth from space.
"It was something I never expected to see."
Speaking about how the astronauts manage international relations in the space station during times of conflict between relative countries on earth, Col Terry Virts added: "When I was in space we were very aware of what was happening on earth during that time - it was affecting my Russian crewmates alot.
"We didn't ignore it. Politics is politics and our main goal is to stay alive and we are going to be an example of why people should and can get along.
"You have to try and survive because you are in a dangerous environment yourself."
