NC astronaut posts Outer Banks picture from space

The N.C. native aboard the International Space Station posted a photo of coastal North Carolina from hundreds of miles above Earth.

Posted 12:41 p.m. Apr 23, 2019 — Updated 2:16 p.m. Apr 23, 2019

Deborah Strange

, WRAL digital journalist

RALEIGH, N.C. — The North Carolina native aboard the International Space Station posted a photo of her home from hundreds of miles above Earth.

Seeing coastal North Carolina from space “took my breath away,” NASA astronaut Christina Koch posted on social media Monday.

“It’s a special thing to see from above the place where you grew up — the ocean that first inspired my fascination with things that make me feel small, and first planted the seeds of a goal to explore.”

Koch, originally from Jacksonville, has been on the International Space Station since March 14. She completed her first spacewalk March 29.

She received a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, a bachelor’s degree in physics and a master’s degree in electrical engineering from North Carolina State University.

NASA announced last week that her time aboard the International Space station was extended to February 2020. Her 328 days would break the record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman.

NCSU grad set to break record for longest spaceflight by woman

The International Space Station on average orbits 240 miles above Earth.

During her March 29 spacewalk, Koch installed batteries to help power the station’s research lab.

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