The International Space Station is an engineering feat that has led to countless scientific discoveries. Like the thousands of satellites in orbit, it manages to stay up in the atmosphere.

Mars has now risen to the rank of the fifth brightest object in the pre-midnight evening sky, rivaled only by the moon, Venus, Jupiter and the brightest of all stars, Sirius.

NASA astronaut Don Pettit's images from the International Space Station are always a cut above. Here are some of the best ...