Penn Psychologists Study Intense Awe Astronauts Feel Viewing Earth From Space

Picture Earth at the center of a frame. The planet looks unassuming, a fleck, its blue-and-white marbling stark against a black interstellar backdrop. Yet the image likely evokes some reaction. Now imagine seeing this view from space. Astronauts who experience Earth from orbit often report feelings of awe and wonder, of being transformed by what they describe as the magic such a perspective brings. This phenomenon is called the "overview effect," and researchers from the University of Pennsylvania 's Positive Psychology Center are studying it to better understand the emotions astronauts commonly recount. Penn research fellows David Yaden and Johannes Eichstaedt , and intern Jonathan Iwry, with colleagues from Thomas Jefferson University, the University of Houston and others, have several goals with this work: to look at implications for space flight as the aeronautical community heads toward years-long missions to places like Mars, and to understand how to induce a similar sensation for non-astronauts.