Astronaut's ISS Potato Photo Sparks Alien Fears

NASA astronaut Don Pettit ignited a wave of online speculation when he posted a photograph from the International Space Station showing what appeared to be a tentacled, egg-shaped object during his time aboard as part of Expedition 72, which ran from September 23, 2024, to April 18, 2025.

The image, shared on the social media platform X on March 20, 2026, depicted a purple lump with dark, stringy protrusions that many viewers mistook for an extraterrestrial creature or something sinister emerging in space. Social media users reacted with alarm and humor. One commenter urged, "Kill it with fire!!!" Another wrote, "Bro I genuinely thought this was some kind of egg hatching." A third referenced a science fiction game, joking that it resembled "a mimic hatching out of an egg."

Pettit, a chemical engineer known for his astrophotography and experiments in space, quickly clarified the object's true nature. "Spudnik1, an orbiting potato on Space_Station!" he wrote in the post. He explained that he had brought potatoes aboard for a personal space garden project conducted during his off-duty hours. "I flew potatoes on Expedition 72 for my space garden, an activity I did in my off-duty...