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Images of Venus and Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC)
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Galileo Earth Views (WMS)
| Title |
Galileo Earth Views (WMS) |
| Abstract |
The Galileo spacecraft was launched from the Space Shuttle Atlantis on October 18, 1989 on a six-year trip to Jupiter. On the way, the trajectory of the spacecraft took it past Venus once and Earth twice. Galileo took the Earth images in this animation just after the first flyby of the Earth, on December 11 and 12, 1990. This six-hour sequence of images taken two minutes apart clearly shows how the Earth looks from space and how fast (or slow) the cloud features change when looked at from a distance. The path of the sun can be seen crossing Australia by its reflection in the nearby ocean, and the terminator region between night and day can be seen moving across the Indian Ocean. In the original images, the Earth's rotation is so dominant that cloud movement is hard to see, but these images have been mapped to the Earth is such a way that a viewer can watch just the clouds move in the ocean around Antarctica or across the Austrailian land mass. In this animation, New Zealand can ony be seen as a stationary disturbance under a moving cloud bank. The black area with the sharp boundary to the north and east of Australia is the side of the Earth that could not be seen from Galileo's position. |
| Completed |
2004-08-06 |
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STEREO Panoramic View
| Title |
STEREO Panoramic View |
| Abstract |
The STEREO mission presents a new view of the space between the Earth and the Sun. This view from the STEREO-A satellite, demonstrates the broad range of sky coverage by the five cameras of the SECCHI instrument. |
| Completed |
2007-02-28 |
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Venus Transit from GOES/SXI
| Title |
Venus Transit from GOES/SXI |
| Abstract |
The planet Venus is seen passing between the Earth and the Sun in this sequence of images taken by GOES/SXI. The last Venus Transit was in 1882, the next will be in 2012. |
| Completed |
2004-07-20 |
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Venus Transit from GOES/SXI
| Title |
Venus Transit from GOES/SXI |
| Abstract |
The planet Venus is seen passing between the Earth and the Sun in this sequence of images taken by GOES/SXI. The last Venus Transit was in 1882, the next will be in 2012. |
| Completed |
2004-07-20 |
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Venus Transit from GOES/SXI
| Title |
Venus Transit from GOES/SXI |
| Abstract |
The planet Venus is seen passing between the Earth and the Sun in this sequence of images taken by GOES/SXI. The last Venus Transit was in 1882, the next will be in 2012. |
| Completed |
2004-07-20 |
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Venus Transit from GOES/SXI
| Title |
Venus Transit from GOES/SXI |
| Abstract |
The planet Venus is seen passing between the Earth and the Sun in this sequence of images taken by GOES/SXI. The last Venus Transit was in 1882, the next will be in 2012. |
| Completed |
2004-07-20 |
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Venus Transit from GOES/SXI
| Title |
Venus Transit from GOES/SXI |
| Abstract |
The planet Venus is seen passing between the Earth and the Sun in this sequence of images taken by GOES/SXI. The last Venus Transit was in 1882, the next will be in 2012. |
| Completed |
2004-07-20 |
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STEREO Coronal Mass Ejection
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| Title |
STEREO Coronal Mass Ejection: From the EUVI to HI-2 |
| Abstract |
This movie collects imagery from SOHO and STEREO-A of a coronal mass ejection (CME) during January of 2007. The instruments in this view, from left to right, are STEREO/HI-1, STEREO/HI-2, SOHO/LASCO/C3, SOHO/LASCO/C2, and STEREO/EUVI. The Heliospheric Imager, HI-2, shows some of the tail of comet McNaught. The dark trapezoidal shape on the left edge of the image in HI-2 is the Earth occulter which will block out the disk of the Earth when it moves into view (since the planet will appear so bright as to saturate the detectors). Due to ongoing work with the STEREO coronagraphs, COR1 and COR2, the SOHO/LASCO coronagraphs are used for this movie. The blue Sun in the center of the coronagraphs is STEREO/EUVI ultraviolet images. There is a 22 hour gap in the data coverage for HI-2 which creates the appearance of a jump in the playback. These are not standard images but are called `running difference' images which highlight changes in the view. White pixels correspond to increases in brightness, while dark pixels reflect a decrease in brightness, with respect to the immediately previous image. 'Running differencing' generates some unusual effects. For example, the mottled background is created by the motion of the stars through the field-of-view as the spacecraft pointing direction slowly changes (the Andromeda galaxy is the oblong 'smudge' near the upper left corner). The planets Venus (right edge of HI-2) and Mercury are visible (near center of HI-1), their column of pixels saturated due to their brightness. * STEREO: Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory * SOHO: SOlar Heliospheric Observatory * LASCO: Large Angle and Spectrometric Coronagraph * EUVI: Extreme UltraViolet Imager |
| Completed |
2007-02-26 |
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STEREO Coronal Mass Ejection
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| Title |
STEREO Coronal Mass Ejection: From the EUVI to HI-2 |
| Abstract |
This movie collects imagery from SOHO and STEREO-A of a coronal mass ejection (CME) during January of 2007. The instruments in this view, from left to right, are STEREO/HI-1, STEREO/HI-2, SOHO/LASCO/C3, SOHO/LASCO/C2, and STEREO/EUVI. The Heliospheric Imager, HI-2, shows some of the tail of comet McNaught. The dark trapezoidal shape on the left edge of the image in HI-2 is the Earth occulter which will block out the disk of the Earth when it moves into view (since the planet will appear so bright as to saturate the detectors). Due to ongoing work with the STEREO coronagraphs, COR1 and COR2, the SOHO/LASCO coronagraphs are used for this movie. The blue Sun in the center of the coronagraphs is STEREO/EUVI ultraviolet images. There is a 22 hour gap in the data coverage for HI-2 which creates the appearance of a jump in the playback. These are not standard images but are called `running difference' images which highlight changes in the view. White pixels correspond to increases in brightness, while dark pixels reflect a decrease in brightness, with respect to the immediately previous image. 'Running differencing' generates some unusual effects. For example, the mottled background is created by the motion of the stars through the field-of-view as the spacecraft pointing direction slowly changes (the Andromeda galaxy is the oblong 'smudge' near the upper left corner). The planets Venus (right edge of HI-2) and Mercury are visible (near center of HI-1), their column of pixels saturated due to their brightness. * STEREO: Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory * SOHO: SOlar Heliospheric Observatory * LASCO: Large Angle and Spectrometric Coronagraph * EUVI: Extreme UltraViolet Imager |
| Completed |
2007-02-26 |
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STEREO Coronal Mass Ejection
…
| Title |
STEREO Coronal Mass Ejection: From the EUVI to HI-2 |
| Abstract |
This movie collects imagery from SOHO and STEREO-A of a coronal mass ejection (CME) during January of 2007. The instruments in this view, from left to right, are STEREO/HI-1, STEREO/HI-2, SOHO/LASCO/C3, SOHO/LASCO/C2, and STEREO/EUVI. The Heliospheric Imager, HI-2, shows some of the tail of comet McNaught. The dark trapezoidal shape on the left edge of the image in HI-2 is the Earth occulter which will block out the disk of the Earth when it moves into view (since the planet will appear so bright as to saturate the detectors). Due to ongoing work with the STEREO coronagraphs, COR1 and COR2, the SOHO/LASCO coronagraphs are used for this movie. The blue Sun in the center of the coronagraphs is STEREO/EUVI ultraviolet images. There is a 22 hour gap in the data coverage for HI-2 which creates the appearance of a jump in the playback. These are not standard images but are called `running difference' images which highlight changes in the view. White pixels correspond to increases in brightness, while dark pixels reflect a decrease in brightness, with respect to the immediately previous image. 'Running differencing' generates some unusual effects. For example, the mottled background is created by the motion of the stars through the field-of-view as the spacecraft pointing direction slowly changes (the Andromeda galaxy is the oblong 'smudge' near the upper left corner). The planets Venus (right edge of HI-2) and Mercury are visible (near center of HI-1), their column of pixels saturated due to their brightness. * STEREO: Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory * SOHO: SOlar Heliospheric Observatory * LASCO: Large Angle and Spectrometric Coronagraph * EUVI: Extreme UltraViolet Imager |
| Completed |
2007-02-26 |
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STEREO Coronal Mass Ejection
…
| Title |
STEREO Coronal Mass Ejection: From the EUVI to HI-2 |
| Abstract |
This movie collects imagery from SOHO and STEREO-A of a coronal mass ejection (CME) during January of 2007. The instruments in this view, from left to right, are STEREO/HI-1, STEREO/HI-2, SOHO/LASCO/C3, SOHO/LASCO/C2, and STEREO/EUVI. The Heliospheric Imager, HI-2, shows some of the tail of comet McNaught. The dark trapezoidal shape on the left edge of the image in HI-2 is the Earth occulter which will block out the disk of the Earth when it moves into view (since the planet will appear so bright as to saturate the detectors). Due to ongoing work with the STEREO coronagraphs, COR1 and COR2, the SOHO/LASCO coronagraphs are used for this movie. The blue Sun in the center of the coronagraphs is STEREO/EUVI ultraviolet images. There is a 22 hour gap in the data coverage for HI-2 which creates the appearance of a jump in the playback. These are not standard images but are called `running difference' images which highlight changes in the view. White pixels correspond to increases in brightness, while dark pixels reflect a decrease in brightness, with respect to the immediately previous image. 'Running differencing' generates some unusual effects. For example, the mottled background is created by the motion of the stars through the field-of-view as the spacecraft pointing direction slowly changes (the Andromeda galaxy is the oblong 'smudge' near the upper left corner). The planets Venus (right edge of HI-2) and Mercury are visible (near center of HI-1), their column of pixels saturated due to their brightness. * STEREO: Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory * SOHO: SOlar Heliospheric Observatory * LASCO: Large Angle and Spectrometric Coronagraph * EUVI: Extreme UltraViolet Imager |
| Completed |
2007-02-26 |
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STEREO Coronal Mass Ejection
…
| Title |
STEREO Coronal Mass Ejection: From the EUVI to HI-2 |
| Abstract |
This movie collects imagery from SOHO and STEREO-A of a coronal mass ejection (CME) during January of 2007. The instruments in this view, from left to right, are STEREO/HI-1, STEREO/HI-2, SOHO/LASCO/C3, SOHO/LASCO/C2, and STEREO/EUVI. The Heliospheric Imager, HI-2, shows some of the tail of comet McNaught. The dark trapezoidal shape on the left edge of the image in HI-2 is the Earth occulter which will block out the disk of the Earth when it moves into view (since the planet will appear so bright as to saturate the detectors). Due to ongoing work with the STEREO coronagraphs, COR1 and COR2, the SOHO/LASCO coronagraphs are used for this movie. The blue Sun in the center of the coronagraphs is STEREO/EUVI ultraviolet images. There is a 22 hour gap in the data coverage for HI-2 which creates the appearance of a jump in the playback. These are not standard images but are called `running difference' images which highlight changes in the view. White pixels correspond to increases in brightness, while dark pixels reflect a decrease in brightness, with respect to the immediately previous image. 'Running differencing' generates some unusual effects. For example, the mottled background is created by the motion of the stars through the field-of-view as the spacecraft pointing direction slowly changes (the Andromeda galaxy is the oblong 'smudge' near the upper left corner). The planets Venus (right edge of HI-2) and Mercury are visible (near center of HI-1), their column of pixels saturated due to their brightness. * STEREO: Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory * SOHO: SOlar Heliospheric Observatory * LASCO: Large Angle and Spectrometric Coronagraph * EUVI: Extreme UltraViolet Imager |
| Completed |
2007-02-26 |
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STEREO Coronal Mass Ejection
…
| Title |
STEREO Coronal Mass Ejection: From the EUVI to HI-2 |
| Abstract |
This movie collects imagery from SOHO and STEREO-A of a coronal mass ejection (CME) during January of 2007. The instruments in this view, from left to right, are STEREO/HI-1, STEREO/HI-2, SOHO/LASCO/C3, SOHO/LASCO/C2, and STEREO/EUVI. The Heliospheric Imager, HI-2, shows some of the tail of comet McNaught. The dark trapezoidal shape on the left edge of the image in HI-2 is the Earth occulter which will block out the disk of the Earth when it moves into view (since the planet will appear so bright as to saturate the detectors). Due to ongoing work with the STEREO coronagraphs, COR1 and COR2, the SOHO/LASCO coronagraphs are used for this movie. The blue Sun in the center of the coronagraphs is STEREO/EUVI ultraviolet images. There is a 22 hour gap in the data coverage for HI-2 which creates the appearance of a jump in the playback. These are not standard images but are called `running difference' images which highlight changes in the view. White pixels correspond to increases in brightness, while dark pixels reflect a decrease in brightness, with respect to the immediately previous image. 'Running differencing' generates some unusual effects. For example, the mottled background is created by the motion of the stars through the field-of-view as the spacecraft pointing direction slowly changes (the Andromeda galaxy is the oblong 'smudge' near the upper left corner). The planets Venus (right edge of HI-2) and Mercury are visible (near center of HI-1), their column of pixels saturated due to their brightness. * STEREO: Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory * SOHO: SOlar Heliospheric Observatory * LASCO: Large Angle and Spectrometric Coronagraph * EUVI: Extreme UltraViolet Imager |
| Completed |
2007-02-26 |
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Venus and Comet Pojmanski
| Title |
Venus and Comet Pojmanski |
| Explanation |
Shining brightly in the east at dawn, Venus [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060201.html ] dominates the sky in this view over a suburban landscape from Bursa, Turkey. An otherwise familiar scene for astronomer Tunc Tezel, his composite picture of the morning sky recorded on March 2nd also includes a surprise visitor to the inner solar system, Comet [ http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/comets/ comets.html&edu=high ] Pojmanski. Cataloged as C/2006 A1 [ http://www.aerith.net/comet/catalog/2006A1/ 2006A1.html ], the comet was discovered on January 2nd by Grzegorz Pojmanski of Warsaw University Astronomical Observatory [ http://www.astrouw.edu.pl/ ] in Poland. At the time very faint [ http://www.aerith.net/pictures/comet.html#2006A1 ] and tracking through southern skies [ http://www.yp-connect.net/~mmatti/ ], the comet has now moved north and grown just bright enough to be a good target for early-rising [ http://astroblogger.blogspot.com/2006/02/ hunting-comet-pojmanski.html ] skygazers with binoculars. Enhanced and framed in this picture, the comet's tail [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000413.html ] has also grown to a length of several degrees. The comet will be at its closest approach to planet Earth, just over 100 million kilometers away, on March 5. For northern hemisphere observers in the next few days, the beginning of morning twilight really will be the best time to spot Comet Pojmanski [ http://skyandtelescope.com/observing/objects/comets/ article_1684_1.asp ]. |
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Sky and Planets
| Title |
Sky and Planets |
| Explanation |
On February 10th, an evocative [ http://www.jps.net/ssumner/ ] evening sky above Rocklin, California, USA inspired astrophotographer Steve Sumner to record this remarkable sight - five planets and the Moon. Near its first quarter phase, the bright Moon [ http://lunar.arc.nasa.gov/ ] was intentionally overexposed but Saturn [ http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/cassini/ ], Jupiter [ http://galileo.jpl.nasa.gov/ ], Mars [ http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/ ], and Mercury [ http://sd-www.jhuapl.edu/MESSENGER/ ] (and, of course, planet Earth's [ http://www.earth.nasa.gov/ ] horizon) are all clearly visible in the deepening twilight. Notably absent in this grouping of naked-eye planets is Venus [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990903.html ] which is still putting in an early appearance as the morning star [ http://ispec.scibernet.com/station/morn_star.html ]. This month, Mercury has joined Venus in the dawn twilight while Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars still shine brightly in the western sky at nightfall [ http://www.skypub.com/sights/sights.shtml ] making another gorgeous close grouping with the crescent Moon [ http://www.inconstantmoon.com/ ]. |
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1006 AD: Supernova in the Sk
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| Title |
1006 AD: Supernova in the Sky |
| Explanation |
A new star, likely the brightest supernova [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030317.html ] in recorded human history [ http://www.seds.org/messier/more/mw_sn.html ], appeared in planet Earth's sky about 1,000 years ago today, in 1006 AD. The expanding debris cloud [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap051226.html ] from the stellar explosion is still visible to modern [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap001202.html ] astronomers, but what did the supernova look like in 1006? In celebration of the millennial anniversary of SN1006, astronomer Tunc Tezel offers this intriguing suggestion, based on a photograph he took on February 22, 1998 from a site overlooking the Mediterranean [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap011207.html ] south of Antalya, Turkey. On that date, bright Venus and a waning crescent Moon shone in [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap020619.html ] the early morning sky. Adopting calculations [ http://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0208415 ] which put the supernova's apparent brightness [ http://www.noao.edu/outreach/press/pr03/pr0304.html ] between Venus and the crescent Moon, he digitally superposed an appropriate new star in the picture. He placed the star at the supernova's position in the southerly constellation of Lupus [ http://www.seasky.org/pictures/ sky7b06.html#Lupus ] and used the water's reflection of moonlight [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap021122.html ] in the final image. |
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Venus, Moon, and Neighbors
| Title |
Venus, Moon, and Neighbors |
| Explanation |
Rising before the Sun on February 2nd, astrophotographer [ http://pages.prodigy.net/pam.orman/JoeGallery.html ] Joe Orman anticipated [ http://pages.prodigy.net/pam.orman/JoeAlmanac2000.html ] this apparition of the bright morning star [ http://ispec.scibernet.com/station/morn_star.html ] Venus near a lovely crescent Moon above a neighbor's house in suburban Phoenix, Arizona, USA. Fortunately, the alignment of bright planets and the Moon is one of the most inspiring sights in the night sky [ http://www.skypub.com/sights/skyevents/0004skyevents.html ] and one that is often easy to enjoy and share without any special equipment. Take tonight [ http://spacescience.com/headlines/y2000/ast30mar_1m.htm ], for example. Those blessed with clear skies can simply step outside near sunset and view a young crescent Moon very near three bright planets in the west Jupiter [ http://galileo.jpl.nasa.gov/ ], Mars [ http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/mgs/ ], and Saturn [ http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/cassini/ ]. Jupiter will be the unmistakable brightest star near the Moon with a reddish Mars just to Jupiter's north and pale yellow Saturn directly above. Of course, these sky shows [ http://drumright.ossm.edu/astronomy/conjunctions.html ] create an evocative picture [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000310.html ] but the planets and Moon just appear to be near each other -- they are actually only approximately lined up and lie in widely separated orbits. Unfortunately, next month's highly publicized alignment of planets [ http://www.griffithobs.org/SkyAlignments.html ] on May 5th will be lost from view in the Sun's glare but such planetary alignments [ http://www.skypub.com/news/special/whypanic.html ] occur repeatedly and pose no danger [ http://www.badastronomy.com/bad/misc/planets.html ] to planet Earth. |
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Pleiades, Planets, And Hot P
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| Title |
Pleiades, Planets, And Hot Plasma |
| Explanation |
Bright stars of the Pleiades, four planets, and erupting solar plasma are all captured in this spectacular image [ http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/hotshots/ ] from the space-based SOlar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO). In the foreground of the 15 degree wide field of view, a bubble of hot plasma, called a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000309.html ]), is blasting away from the active Sun [ http://www.spaceweather.com/ ] whose position and relative size is indicated by the central white circle. Beyond [ http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/hotshots/2000_05_03/ diagram1.jpg ] appear four of the five [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000505.html ] naked-eye planets [ http://sse.jpl.nasa.gov/features/planets/ planetsfeat.html ] -- courtesy [ http://www.badastronomy.com/bad/misc/planets.html ] of the planetary alignment [ http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2000/ ast30mar_1m.htm#alignments ] which did not destroy the world! In the background are distant stars and the famous Pleiades [ http://www.seds.org/messier/m/m045.html ] star cluster, also easily visible to the unaided eye when it shines in the night sky [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000504.html ]. Distances for these familiar [ http://www.seds.org/nineplanets/nineplanets/ nineplanets.html ] celestial objects are, the Sun [ http://helios.gsfc.nasa.gov/sun.html ], 150 million kilometers away, Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, and Saturn, about 58, 110, 780, and 1,400 million kilometers beyond the Sun respectively, and the Pleiades [ http://www.ras.ucalgary.ca/~gibson/pleiades/ ] star cluster at a mere 3,800 trillion kilometers (400 light-years). SOHO itself orbits 1.5 million kilometers sunward of planet Earth. The image [ http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/data/latestimages.html ] was recorded by the Large Angle and Spectrometric COronagraph (LASCO) instrument on board SOHO on Monday, May 15 at 10:42 UT. |
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The Belt of Venus over the V
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| Title |
The Belt of Venus over the Valley of the Moon |
| Explanation |
Although you've surely seen it, you might not have noticed it. During a cloudless twilight [ http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary/twilight ], just before sunrise [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030320.html ] or after sunset [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030412.html ], part of the atmosphere above the horizon appears slightly off-color, slightly pink. Called the Belt of Venus [ http://www.weather-photography.com/Photos/gallery.php?cat=optics&subcat=venus_belt ], this off-color band between the dark eclipsed [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030822.html ] sky and the blue sky [ http://www.sciencemadesimple.com/sky_blue.html ] can be seen in nearly every direction including that opposite the Sun. Straight above, blue sky [ http://www.why-is-the-sky-blue.org/why-is-the-sky-blue.html ] is normal sunlight reflecting off the atmosphere. In the Belt of Venus [ http://epod.usra.edu/archive/epodviewer.php3?oid=158080 ], however, the atmosphere reflects light from the setting (or rising) Sun which appears more red. The Belt of Venus [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belt_of_Venus ] can be seen from any location with a clear horizon. Pictured above, the Belt of Venus was photographed above morning fog [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap021122.html ] in the Valley of the Moon [ http://www.vmoa.kenwood.ca.us/ ], a famous wine-producing region in northern California [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California ], USA [ http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/us.html ]. The belt is frequently [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap011209.html ] caught [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010601.html ] by [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010308.html ] accident [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990418.html ] in [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990325.html ] other [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990308.html ] photographs [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010501.html ]. |
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Planets In The Sun
| Title |
Planets In The Sun |
| Explanation |
Today [ http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2000/ast02may_1.htm ], all five naked-eye planets [ http://www.seds.org/nineplanets/nineplanets/ ] (Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn) plus the Moon and the Sun [ http://helios.gsfc.nasa.gov/ sun.html ] will at least approximately line-up. As viewed [ http://drumright.ossm.edu/astronomy/conjunctions.html ] from planet Earth, they will be clustered within about 26 degrees, the closest alignment for all these celestial bodies [ http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2000/ ast30mar_1m.htm#alignments ] since February 1962, when there was a solar eclipse [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990818.html ]! Such planetary alignments [ http://www.griffithobs.org/SkyAlignments.html ] are not dangerous, except of course that the Sun might hurt your eyes when you look at it [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap981212.html ]. So it might be easier [ http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/hotshots/ ] to appreciate today's solar system [ http://space.jpl.nasa.gov/ ] spectacle if |
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Venus Express Arrives at Ven
…
| Title |
Venus Express Arrives at Venus |
| Explanation |
Humanity now has a spacecraft orbiting Venus. The robotic Venus Express spacecraft [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venus_Express ] launched by the European Space Agency [ http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Venus_Express/index.html ] in 2005 November arrived at Venus [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/venus.html ] in 2006 April. Venus Express is now orbiting Earth's sister planet and returning pictures. Pictured above [ http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Venus_Express/SEM9A3XAIPE_1.html ] is a false-color, time-lapse movie in ultraviolet light [ http://imagers.gsfc.nasa.gov/ems/uv.html] captured by the Venus Express spacecraft as it flew over Venus [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap040516.html ]' northern hemisphere in late May. Venus Express [ http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Venus_Express/SEMBD3808BE_0.html ] is scheduled to orbit Venus [ http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Venus_Express/SEM9C3808BE_0.html ] for three years and collect data that might help in answering questions that include why Venus continually generates hurricane-force [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap040915.html ] winds, why Venus became so hot [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap050410.html ] in the past, and if there is any current volcanic activity on Venus [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap031130.html ]. It is hoped that a better understanding of Venus's hot [ http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Venus_Express/SEMFPY808BE_0.html ] and inhospitable climate will help humanity better understand Earth's climate [ http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/1999/02/990223083118.htm ] as well. |
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Lightning on Earth
| Title |
Lightning on Earth |
| Explanation |
Nobody knows what causes lightning. It is known that charges [ http://physics.bu.edu/~duffy/PY106/Charge.html ] slowly separate in some clouds [ http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/cld/cldtyp/home.rxml ] causing rapid electrical discharges [ http://www.eng.tau.ac.il/Pages/Departments/Inter/edp_lab/ ] (lightning), but how electrical charges [ http://physicsstudio.indstate.edu/java/potential/ProyectI.html ] get separated in clouds [ http://www.geo.mtu.edu/department/classes/ge406/tjbrabec/cloud.html ] remains a topic of much research. Nevertheless, lightning [ http://wvlightning.com/info.html ] bolts are common in clouds during rainstorms, and on average 6000 lightning bolts occur between clouds and the Earth every minute. Above [ http://www.noao.edu/image_gallery/html/im0426.html ], several lightning strokes were photographed behind Kitt Peak National Observatory [ http://www.noao.edu/outreach/kpoutreach.html ] in Arizona [ http://www.state.az.us/ ]. Lightning [ http://bondo.wsc.mass.edu/dept/garp/faculty/lightn.htm ] has also been found on the planets Venus [ http://www.lpl.arizona.edu/~hansell/lightning/poster.html ], Jupiter [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap971216.html ], Saturn [ http://learn.jpl.nasa.gov/projectspacef/bkg130b.html ], and Uranus [ http://www.spacetoday.org/SolSys/Uranus/Uranus.html ]. NASA [ http://www.nasa.gov/ ] launched the TRMM mission [ http://trmm.gsfc.nasa.gov/news.html ] in 1997 that continues to measure rainfall and lightning [ http://thunder.msfc.nasa.gov/primer/ ] on planet Earth [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990131.html ]. |
|
Eight Planets and New Solar
…
| Title |
Eight Planets and New Solar System Designations |
| Explanation |
How many planets are in the Solar System? This popular question now has a new formal answer according the International Astronomical Union [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Astronomical_Union ] (IAU): eight. Last week, the IAU voted [ http://www.iau2006.org/mirror/www.iau.org/iau0603/index.html ] on a new definition for planet [ http://www.iau2006.org/mirror/www.iau.org/iau0603/index.html ] and Pluto [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010319.html ] did not make the cut. Rather, Pluto was re-classified as a dwarf planet [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dwarf_planet ] and is considered as a prototype for a new category of trans-Neptunian objects [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trans-Neptunian_object ]. The eight planets now recognized by the IAU are: Mercury [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap040912.html ], Venus [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap040516.html ], Earth [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap050102.html ], Mars [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060730.html ], Jupiter [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap050911.html ], Saturn [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap041225.html ], Uranus [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010826.html ], and Neptune [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010821.html ]. Solar System objects now classified as dwarf planets are: Ceres [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060821.html ], Pluto [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060624.html ], and the currently unnamed 2003 UB313 [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060207.html ]. Planets, by the new IAU definition, must be in orbit around the sun, be nearly spherical, and must have cleared the neighborhood around their orbits. The demotion of Pluto [ http://www.nineplanets.org/pluto.html ] to dwarf planet status is a source of continuing dissent [ http://www.badastronomy.com/bablog/2006/08/18/colbert-takes-neil-tyson-down/ ] and controversy [ http://newswire.ascribe.org/cgi-bin/behold.pl?ascribeid=20060818.063045&time=07%2006%20PDT&year=2006&public=0 ] in the astronomical community. |
|
Moon And Venus Share The Sky
| Title |
Moon And Venus Share The Sky |
| Explanation |
July is drawing to a close and in the past few days, some early morning risers [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990714.html ] could have looked east and seen a crescent Moon sharing the pre-dawn [ http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2000/ast25jul_1m.htm ] skies with planets Jupiter and Saturn. Planet Mercury will also pass about 2 degrees from the thin waning crescent Moon [ http://aa.usno.navy.mil/AA/faq/docs/moon_phases.html ] just before sunrise near the eastern horizon on Saturday, July 29. And finally, on the evening of July 31st, Venus will take its turn near the crescent Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap991108.html ]. But this time it will be a day-old crescent Moon near the western horizon, shortly after sunset [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000507.html ]. In fact [ http://pages.prodigy.net/pam.orman/JoeAlmanac2000.html ], on July 31 (August 1 Universal Time) the Moon will occult [ http://www.skypub.com/sights/occultations/lunar/ 0001lunarocc.html ] (pass in front of) Venus for northwestern observers [ http://www.skypub.com/sights/images2000/ 0008moonvenus_big.jpg ] in North America. This telescopic picture taken on 31 December 1997, shows a lovely young crescent Moon and brilliant crescent Venus in [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990903.html ] the early evening sky near Bursa, Turkey [ http://www.mersina.com/Turkey/Marmara/Bursa/index.html ]. And what about the Sun? On Sunday, July 30, a partial eclipse of the Sun [ http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/extra/ PSE2000Jul31.html ] will be visible from some locations [ http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/OH/ PSE2000Jul.gif ] in North America. |
|
Crescent Venus and Moon
| Title |
Crescent Venus and Moon |
| Explanation |
There's something behind these clouds. Those faint graceful arcs, upon inspection, are actually far, far in the distance. They are the Earth's Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060907.html ] and the planet Venus [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planet_Venus ]. Both the Moon and Venus [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap050913.html ] are bright enough to be seen during the day, and both are quite capable of showing a crescent phase [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060618.html ]. To see Venus, which appears quite small, in a crescent phase [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060110.html ] requires binoculars [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Binoculars ] or a telescope. In the above dramatic daytime image [ http://eder.csillagaszat.hu/digital/venus_fedes/Ven_fed.html ] taken from Budapest [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budapest ], Hungary [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hungary ], the Moon and Venus [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060723.html ] shared a similar crescent phase a few minutes before the Moon eclipsed [ http://www.astronomy.no/venus080604/venusocc/images.html ] the larger but more distant world. About an hour later, Venus reappeared. |
|
Yepun
| Title |
Yepun |
| Explanation |
Pictured above on September 3rd, the enclosure for the 8.2 meter telescope christened Yepun glints dramatically in the light of the setting sun. Later that evening, under dark skies [ http://www.eso.org/outreach/press-rel/pr-2000/ phot-15B-00.html ] at Paranal Observatory, Chile [ http://www.ociw.edu/lco/links/astro_link_en.html ], astronomers and engineers successfully captured Yepun's first light images [ http://www.eso.org/outreach/press-rel/pr-2000/ pr-18-00.html ], making Yepun the fourth and final unit of the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope (VLT) array to reach this milestone. Ultimately, the light from the three other 8.2 meter unit telescopes (Antu, Kueyen, and Melipal [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000707.html ]) will be combined with Yepun's to achieve an effective aperture [ http://www.seds.org/billa/bigeyes.html ] of 16.4 meters -- creating the world's largest [ http://www.howstuffworks.com/news-item214.htm ] optical telescope [ http://www.telescope.org/rti/index.html ]. But the next major step will be to combine beams from two of the telescopes creating an interferometer. The upper part of the mostly subterranean interferometer lab is the building in front of the telescope enclosure. The VLT unit telescope names have been taken from the Mapuche [ http://www.uchile.cl/cultura/mapa/artesamapuche/ingles/ index.htm ] language [ http://www-linguistics.stanford.edu/~arnold/mapuche/ mapudungun.html ]. Originally thought to refer to the bright star Sirius, the word Yepun [ http://www.eso.org/outreach/info-events/ut1fl/yepun.html ] is now believed by linguists to mean Venus or evening star [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990903.html ]. |
|
Children of the Sun
| Title |
Children of the Sun |
| Explanation |
For a moment [ http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/index.html ], planets Jupiter [ http://kids.nineplanets.org/jupiter.htm ], Venus [ http://kids.nineplanets.org/venus.htm ], Mars [ http://kids.nineplanets.org/mars.htm ], and Mercury [ http://kids.nineplanets.org/mercury.htm ] all posed near their parent star in this Sun-centered view, recorded on November 11. The picture, from a coronograph onboard the space-based SOlar Heliospheric Observatory [ http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/ ], spans 15 degrees with the Sun's size and position indicated by the white circle. Background stars are also visible as the otherwise overwhelming sunlight is blocked by the coronograph's [ http://lasco-www.nrl.navy.mil/index.php?p=content/ about_lasco ] occulting disk. But the planets themselves, in particular Jupiter and Venus, are still bright enough to cause significant horizontal streaks in the image. Mercury is actually moving most rapidly (left to right) through the field and days earlier [ http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/hotshots/2006_11_06/ ] was seen to cross in front [ http://www.spaceweather.com/eclipses/gallery_08nov06.htm ] of the solar disk. So what's that bright double star to the left of Mars? Zubenelgenubi [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap040514.html ], of course. |
|
Simulated Transit of Mercury
| Title |
Simulated Transit of Mercury |
| Explanation |
Mercury, the solar system's innermost planet, will spend about five hours crossing in front of the Sun today [ http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2006/ 20oct_transitofmercury.htm ] - beginning at 1912 UT [ http://aa.usno.navy.mil/faq/docs/UT.html ] (2:12pm EST), November 8. Specially equipped telescopes are highly recommended to safely spot the planet's [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap991210.html ] diminutive silhouette however, as Mercury should appear about 200 times smaller than the enormous solar disk. This simulated view [ http://www.sungazer.net/transitsim.html ] is based on a filtered solar image recorded on November 3rd. It shows active regions and the Mercury transit [ http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/OH/transit06.html ] across the Sun at six positions from lower left to middle right [ http://www.sungazer.net/transit110806a.html ]. Depending on your location [ http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/OH/ image1/TM2006Nov08-Fig2.GIF ], the Sun may not be above the horizon during the entire transit, but webcasts of the event [ http://www.exploratorium.edu/transit/ ] are planned - including one using images from the sun-staring SOHO [ http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/hotshots/ 2006_11_06/ ] spacecraft. This is the second of 14 transits of Mercury during the 21st century. The next similar event will be a transit of Venus in June of 2012. |
|
Three Planets in Dawn Skies
| Title |
Three Planets in Dawn Skies |
| Explanation |
Three children of the Sun [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap061116.html ] rise in the east in this peaceful dawn skyview recorded December 7th near Bolu, Turkey. Inner planet Mercury [ http://kids.nineplanets.org/mercury.htm ], fresh from its second transit [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap061114.html ] of the 21st century, stands highest in the bright sky at the top right. Gas giant Jupiter [ http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/factsheet/ jupiterfact.html ] lies below the cloud bank near picture center. A newsworthy Mars [ http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/mars/news/ mgs-20061206.html ] is also visible, right of Jupiter and just above the dark cloud bank. On Sunday, these planets will form a much tighter grouping [ http://skytonight.com/observing/ataglance ] before sunrise [ http://niteskys.com/mercury_mars_jupiter_120806.html ], while in the coming days the western sky after sunset will be ruled by brilliant planet Venus [ http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Venus_Express/ ], also known as the evening star. |
|
October Skylights
| Title |
October Skylights |
| Explanation |
With brilliant Venus [ http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/factsheet/ venusfact.html ] above the western horizon at sunset and Jupiter [ http://galileo.jpl.nasa.gov/ ] and Saturn [ http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/cassini/ ] high in the east by early evening, November's night sky is filled with bright planets. October's sky featured bright planets as well and, triggered by the active Sun, some lovely auroral displays [ http://www.exploratorium.edu/learning_studio/ auroras/ ]. This colorful aurora was recorded by astrophotographer Wade Clark in skies above Hamilton, Washington, USA on the night of October 4th. Through the shimmering northern lights [ http://climate.gi.alaska.edu/Curtis/aurora/ aurora.html ] Jupiter and Saturn are easy to spot [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000929.html ] flanking the V-shaped head of Taurus [ http://server.remc12.k12.mi.us/csplanet/myth/ taurus.html ] the Bull. Of course, just above lies the lovely Pleiades star cluster. Solar activity [ http://spaceweather.com/ ] will also produce auroral shows in November, particularly at high northern and southern latitudes. Plus, November skygazers can certainly anticipate a celestial performance on the evening of the 17th/18th -- the moonlit Leonid meteor shower [ http://spacescience.com/headlines/y2000/ast10oct_1.htm ]. |
|
Comet McNaught Over Cataloni
…
| Title |
Comet McNaught Over Catalonia |
| Explanation |
This past weekend Comet McNaught peaked at a brightness that surpassed even Venus. Fascinated sky enthusiasts in the Earth's northern hemisphere were treated to an instantly visible [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070113.html ] comet head and a faint elongated tail near sunrise and sunset. Recent brightness estimates [ http://cfa-www.harvard.edu/icq/CometMags.html#2006P1 ] had Comet McNaught [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comet_McNaught ] brighter than magnitude [ http://csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr162/lect/stars/magnitudes.html ] -5 (minus five) over this past weekend, making it the brightest comet [ http://cfa-www.harvard.edu/icq/brightest.html ] since Comet Ikeya-Seki [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ikeya-Seki ] in 1965, which was recorded at -7 (minus seven). The Great Comet [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Comet ] of 2007 reached its brightest as it rounded the Sun well inside the orbit of Mercury. Over the next week Comet McNaught [ http://cometography.com/lcomets/2006p1.html ] will begin to fade as it moves south and away from the Sun. The unexpectedly bright comet should remain visible [ http://cfa-www.harvard.edu/iau/Ephemerides/Comets/2006P1_1.html ] to observers in the southern hemisphere [ http://www.assa.org.au/sig/comets/mcnaught.asp ] with unaided eyes for the rest of January. The above image, vertically compressed, was taken at sunset last Friday from mountains above Catalonia [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catalonia ], Spain [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spain ]. |
|
Castle and Sky
| Title |
Castle and Sky |
| Explanation |
While Comet McNaught [ http://spaceweather.com/comets/ gallery_mcnaught_page18.php ] ruled southern skies, last week's conjunction [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Astronomical_conjunction ] of the Moon and Venus could be enjoyed by denizens [ http://mizar.blogalia.com/ ] of both hemispheres of planet Earth. The two more commonly viewed celestial beacons produced this lovely twilight scene, recorded last Saturday in skies above Almodovar near Cordoba [ http://viajero.blogalia.com/historias/45824 ] in southern Spain. Brilliant Venus and [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap061030.html ] a slender crescent Moon seem to overlook the small town, along with a well-lit Castle Almodovar [ http://www.castillodealmodovar.com/historia.htm ]. The impressive castle's [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap050218.html ] construction began in the 700s on the strategic site of a Roman fort. It was extensively restored in the 20th century. |
|
International Space Station
…
| Title |
International Space Station Trail |
| Explanation |
Still under construction, the International Space Station [ http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/station/assembly/ ] is becoming one of the brightest [ http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2000/ast01dec_1.htm ], fastest moving "stars" in the heavens. Despite illuminated clouds and bright light from a nearly full moon (lower left), this 5 minute time exposure easily captures the Space Station's trail as it arcs through early evening skies above Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA on December 9 [ http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/spacenews/reports/sts97/ STS-97-18.html ]. At the time, the Space Shuttle Endeavour [ http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/shuttle/index.html ] had undocked [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap001018.html ] and moved away from the orbiting platform, the shuttle crew having just completed the installation of large solar panels to power the Space Station's systems. Sunlight glinting off the large, shiny panels is likely the source of the brief flare [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap991022.html ] visible along the track. Astrophotographer Doug Murray and colleague report that both Shuttle and Space Station were visible [ http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/realdata/sightings/index.html ] separately and on close inspection of this image they do produce distinct, parallel arcs. At the extreme right hand edge of the picture, the trails pass [ http://liftoff.msfc.nasa.gov/temp/StationLoc.html ] very near the brightest "star" in the night sky, Venus [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990903.html ]. |
|
Lisbon Moonset
| Title |
Lisbon Moonset |
| Explanation |
Brilliant Venus [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap061030.html ], a slender crescent Moon, and lights along the Ponte 25 de Abril [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/25_de_Abril_Bridge ] glow against the western twilight in this lovely moonset scene from Lisbon, Portugal, recorded on March 20. In fact, such serene views were enjoyed across planet Earth this week, as the young Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap050513.html ] remained near the setting Sun following a partial solar eclipse, and Venus ruled as the evening star [ http://www.johnpratt.com/items/astronomy/eve_morn.html ]. Because of strong Earthshine [ http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2002/ 12apr_earthshine.htm ] - light from the sunlit Earth - even the Moon's night side is clearly visible in the picture. The Ponte 25 de Abril [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070324.html http://maps.google.com/maps?q=38.690066,-9.177017&ie=UTF8 &om=1&z=18&ll=38.685028,-9.17566&spn=0.002789,0.004292&t=k &iwloc=addr ] is a 2.3 kilometer long suspension bridge across the Tagus river, often compared to the Golden Gate [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030521.html ] bridge in San Francisco, USA. |
|
Nashville Four Planet Skylin
…
| Title |
Nashville Four Planet Skyline |
| Explanation |
So far this February, evening skies [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000504.html ] have been blessed with a glorious Moon and three bright planets, Venus [ http://www.library.utoronto.ca/utel/rp/poems/ longfe10.html ], Jupiter, and Saturn. But just last week, on January 30th, an extreme wide-angle lens allowed astrophotographer Larry Koehn to capture this twilight view of Moon and four planets above [ http://www.seds.org/nineplanets/nineplanets/ see.html ] Nashville, Tennessee, USA. These major solar system [ http://space.jpl.nasa.gov/ ] bodies lie along the ecliptic plane [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap001014.html ] and so follow a diagonal line through the picture. Starting near the upper left corner is bright Jupiter [ http://starchild.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/StarChild/ solar_system_level2/jupiter.html ], which takes on a slightly triangular shape due to the lens distortion. Just below and right of Jupiter is Saturn [ http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/cassini/english/kids/ saturn_in_sky.html ]. Continuing along the diagonal toward the lower right is an overexposed, six day old Moon [ http://www.inconstantmoon.com/ ] and brilliant Venus seemingly embedded in clouds. The fourth planet pictured is Mercury. Notoriously hard to see from planet Earth because it never wanders far from the Sun, Mercury is [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap991111.html ] visible just above the lower right corner. The line from Jupiter to Mercury spans about 92 degrees across the Nashville sky. |
|
Venus by the Lake
| Title |
Venus by the Lake |
| Explanation |
Finding Venus [ http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/Media/releases/ssc2007-07/ ssc2007-07c.shtml ] in the night sky is not too hard these days. Now appearing as the evening star, Venus rules as the brightest celestial beacon in west just after sunset [ http://www.baltastro.org/AstroPoetry.html#Learned ]. And if you can find Venus tonight, you can also easily find the lovely Pleiades [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap050111.html ] star cluster (aka M45) close by. In this serene skyview, recorded on Tuesday near Bolu, Turkey, Venus and [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap040415.html ] the Pleiades are on the right, with brilliant Venus reflected in the calm waters of the small lake in the foreground. Left of Venus, the bright star Aldebaran anchors [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060720.html ] the V-shaped Hyades star cluster. Farther left are stars of the familiar constellation Orion with Rigel, at the foot of Orion, also reflected in the lake. Meanwhile, Sirius, in Canis Major, [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070203.html ] is the brightest star on the left side of the view. But the bright terrestrial light below Sirius is not a reflection, it's just a light near the lake shore. |
|
Seven Dusty Sisters
| Title |
Seven Dusty Sisters |
| Explanation |
Hurtling through a cosmic dust cloud a mere 400 light-years away, the lovely Pleiades [ http://www.naic.edu/~gibson/pleiades/ ] or Seven Sisters star cluster is well-known in astronomical images for its striking blue reflection nebulae [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060109.html ]. At visible wavelengths, the starlight is scattered and reflected by the dust, but in this portrait [ http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/Media/releases/ssc2007-07/ index.shtml ] in infrared light [ http://coolcosmos.ipac.caltech.edu/ ] by the Spitzer Space Telescope, the dust itself glows. The false color image spans about 1 degree or seven light-years at the distance of the Pleiades, with the densest regions of the dust cloud shown in yellow and red hues. Exploring this [ http://www.pleiade.org/pleiades_03.html ] young, nearby cluster, the Spitzer data have revealed many cool, low mass stars, brown dwarfs [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000713.html ] or failed stars, and possible planetary debris disks. Want to see the Pleiades tonight? Look near [ http://skytonight.com/observing/highlights/ VenusAndPleiades.html ] Venus, the brilliant evening star in the west just after sunset. |
|
Jupiter, Saturn and Messier
…
| Title |
Jupiter, Saturn and Messier 45 |
| Explanation |
Brilliant Venus falls out [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990903.html] of the evening sky as March ends, but Jupiter and Saturn remain well up above the western horizon. Jupiter [ http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/galileo/jupiter/jupiter.html ] blazes forth above and to the left of a slightly fainter Saturn [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000212.html ] in this telephoto picture taken on January 19th. Near the top lies the lovely Pleiades [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000227.html ] star cluster with suggestions of its characteristic blue reflection nebulae [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/ apod_search?reflection+nebula ]. These planets and the Pleiades have a similar, easily recognizable orientation in the Spring night sky. Also known as M45 [ http://www.seds.org/messier/m/m045.html ], the 45th object in French astronomer Charles Messier's [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960626.html ] famous catalog, the Pleiades will likely soon be checked off many stargazers' tally lists. For northern hemisphere observers this weekend offers a prime opportunity to complete a Messier Marathon [ http://www.seds.org/messier/xtra/marathon/ marathon.html ] -- the viewing of all 110 Messier catalog objects [ http://www.seds.org/messier/data2.html ] in one glorious [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000311.html ] dusk to dawn observing run. This weekend it will also be possible to complete an all-planet marathon, observing all the solar system's [ http://space.jpl.nasa.gov/ ] planets in a single night. And if you still need something to look at, the International Space Station [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/osf/station/viewing/ issvis.html ] could also be visible arcing through the skies depending on your location, but Mir will not [ http://www.russianspaceweb.com/ ]. |
|
Young Moon and Sister Stars
| Title |
Young Moon and Sister Stars |
| Explanation |
A young [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap050513.html ] crescent Moon shared the western sky with thin clouds and the sister stars [ http://www.naic.edu/~gibson/pleiades/pleiades_myth.html ] of the Pleiades cluster in this early evening skyscape recorded on April 19th. Astronomical images of the well-known Pleiades [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060109.html ] often show the star cluster's alluring blue reflection nebulae, but they are washed-out here in the clouds and bright moonlight. While the 3-day old Moon is overexposed, surface features can be seen on the dim lunar night side, illuminated by earthshine [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap020419.html ] - light from sunlit planet Earth. Only a week earlier [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070414.html ], brilliant Venus also posed near the sister stars. Of course, Venus has not yet wandered too far from the Pleiades and still rules western skies as the evening star [ http://www.baltastro.org/AstroPoetry.html#EveningStar ]. |
|
Bright Venus
| Title |
Bright Venus |
| Explanation |
Have you seen a bright evening star [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990903.html ] in the western sky lately? That's no star, that's planet Venus the second "rock" from the Sun [ http://space.jpl.nasa.gov/ ]. Blazing at -4.6 magnitude [ http://liftoff.msfc.nasa.gov/academy/universe/ MAG.HTML ], Venus, after the Sun and Moon, is the third brightest celestial body in planet Earth's sky [ http://www.skypub.com/sights/sights.shtml ]. Venus is closer [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990612.html ] to the Sun than Earth and as Venus orbits [ http://astrosun.tn.cornell.edu/courses/astro201/ venus_phase.htm ] the Sun it is seen to go through phases [ http://euclid.sms.port.ac.uk/students/astrowise/ venus/demo1.html ] similar to the Moon. But unlike the Moon, as Venus waxes and wanes [ http://www.badastronomy.com/bitesize/ venus_phase.html ] its distance from Earth and hence its apparent size changes drastically. This causes Venus to look brighter [ http://www.science.nasa.gov/newhome/headlines/ ast14jun99_1.htm ] as it looms large in its crescent phases than when it is smaller and nearly full. Taken on January 28th, this dramatic picture finds a crescent Venus near its brightest to the right of a crescent Moon. The brilliant rivals seem poised above a satellite dish of the Scripps Satellite Oceanography Facility [ http://www.sio.ucsd.edu/about_scripps/scripps_tour/ siotour18.htm ]. Closer to the horizon, just below and to the right of the satellite dish, Mercury [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000320.html ] pierces the twilight glow. |
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Venus Near the Moon
| Title |
Venus Near the Moon |
| Explanation |
The two brightest objects in the night sky appeared to go right past each other last week. On the night of May 19, Earth's Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap051113.html ] and the planet Venus [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070501.html ] were visible in the same part of the sky, and at closest approach were less than one degree apart. The conjunction was captured in the above image taken from near Quebec City [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quebec_City ], Quebec [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quebec ], Canada [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canada ]. Venus appears on the lower left of the above photo. The spires [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010415.html ] that appear to emanate from Venus [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venus ] are diffraction spikes [ http://spider.ipac.caltech.edu/staff/kaspar/obs_mishaps/images/int_reflection2.html ] caused by the camera itself. The image is so clear that craters on the Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060530.html ] are resolved. Of course, the real physical distance between the two heavenly bodies was not unusually small -- the apparent conjunction [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conjunction_%28astronomy_and_astrology%29 ] was really just an illusion [ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvY7NGncCgU ] of perspective [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap050913.html ]. Although Earth's Moon passes Venus once each month, such a close passing [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap061030.html ] visible in the evening sky [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap020524.html ] is more rare. |
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Swirling Clouds Over the Sou
…
| Title |
Swirling Clouds Over the South Pole of Venus |
| Explanation |
What's happening over the South Pole of Venus? To find out, scientists sent the robot Venus Express spacecraft [ http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Venus_Express/SEMBD3808BE_0.html ] now orbiting Venus [ http://www.nineplanets.org/venus.html ] directly over the lower spin axis of Earth's overheated twin. Venus Express [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venus_Express ] confirmed there a spectacular massive swirling storm system with similarities to the vortex recently imaged over Saturn's South Pole [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap061113.html ]. The above composite image [ http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Venus_Express/SEMUTYNFGLE_0.html ] in infrared light [ http://science.hq.nasa.gov/kids/imagers/ems/infrared.html ] features Venus' daytime side on the left, shining primarily by reflected sunlight, and nighttime side on the right, shining primarily by thermal light [ http://tes.asu.edu/MARS_SURVEYOR/MGSTES/TIR_description.html ]. A Venusian polar vortex is visible as the small circular feature near the center of the thermal infrared image pictured on the right. Close inspection of other South Pole images [ http://www.esa.int/esaSC/SEMYGQEFWOE_index_0.html ] unexpectedly showed a second vortex, meaning that the unusual swirling clouds are like an Earth-hurricane [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap040915.html ] that has two eyes. Why a double vortex has formed is now a topic of research [ http://adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-bib_query?bibcode=2006IAUJD..10E...8S ]. The above image [ http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Venus_Express/SEMUTYNFGLE_0.html ] was taken last year, and more recent images [ http://www.esa.int/esa-mmg/mmg.pl?mission=Venus+Express&type=I ] from Venus Express are being processed that have as much as 100 times more detail. |
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The Iron Tail of Comet McNau
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| Title |
The Iron Tail of Comet McNaught |
| Explanation |
Outstanding in planet Earth's sky [ http://www.spaceweather.com/comets/ gallery_mcnaught_page23.php ] early this year, Comet McNaught [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comet_McNaught ] is captured in this view from the STEREO [ http://stereo.gsfc.nasa.gov/ ] A spacecraft. McNaught's coma [ http://www.nasa.gov/worldbook/comet_worldbook.html ] is so bright, it blooms [ http://www.cs.duke.edu/~parr/photography/ faq.html#blooming ] into the long horizontal stripe at the bottom of the field. Brilliant Venus, near the top left corner, also produces a severe horizontal blemish in the digital image. But the sensitive camera does accurately record the striations in McNaught's famous dust tail [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070201.html ] along a region stretching over 30 million kilometers toward the top right of the field of view. A separate, fainter, arching tail just to the left of the dust tail was initially thought to be an example of a common ion tail [ http://www.ifa.hawaii.edu/~jewitt/tail.html ], formed by electrically charged atoms [ http://www.chem4kids.com/files/atom_ions.html ] carried away from the comet by the solar wind [ http://www.phy6.org/Education/wsolwind.html ]. However, detailed [ http://www.swisseduc.ch/stromboli/pdf/irontail.pdf ] modeling indicates that tail is actually due to neutral iron atoms pushed out by the pressure of sunlight [ http://www.phy6.org/stargaze/Solsail.htm ] -- the first ever detected neutral iron tail from a comet. The iron atoms are thought to originate in dust grains [ http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov/home/index.html ] from the comet nucleus [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap050915.html ] that contain the iron-sulfur mineral troilite [ http://www.mindat.org/min-4029.html ] (FeS). |
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The Moon's Saturn
| Title |
The Moon's Saturn |
| Explanation |
On May 22nd, just days after sharing the western evening sky with Venus [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070523.html ], the Moon moved on to Saturn [ http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/home/index.cfm ] - actually passing in front of the ringed planet when viewed in skies over Europe, northern Africa, and western Asia. Because the Moon and bright planets wander through the sky near the ecliptic plane [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap050503.html ], such occultation events [ http://www.lunar-occultations.com/iota/planets/ planets.htm ] are not uncommon, but they are dramatic [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030724.html ], especially in telescopic views. For example, in this sharp image Saturn is captured emerging from [ http://www.tamanti.it/Solar%20Sys/SaturnOccultation.htm ] behind the Moon, giving the illusion that it lies just beyond the Moon's bright edge. Of course, the Moon is a mere 400 thousand kilometers away, compared to Saturn's distance of 1.4 billion [ http://kokogiak.com/megapenny/nine.asp ] kilometers. Taken with [ http://www.kopfgeist.com/besonderes.htm ] a digital camera and 20 inch diameter telescope at the Weikersheim Observatory [ http://www.sternwarte-weikersheim.de/about/ about_set.html ] in southern Germany, the picture is a single exposure adjusted to reduce the difference in brightness between Saturn and the cratered lunar surface. |
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One Hundred-Kilometer Terrai
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| Title |
One Hundred-Kilometer Terrain on Venus |
| Explanation |
Even the hot and cracked surface of Venus [ http://www.nineplanets.org/venus.html ] has rolling hills. Although never actually photographed from up-close, images of the Venusian surface [ http://csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr161/lect/venus/surface.html ] like that shown above have been constructed in recent years by digitally merging distant photographs from height-sensitive radar [ http://southport.jpl.nasa.gov/ ]. Isolated above [ http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/PIAGenCatalogPage.pl?PIA00150 ] is a 100-kilometer wide swath inside a volcanic region [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000326.html ] known as Yavine Corona. Visible in the frame [ http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/PIAGenCatalogPage.pl?PIA00150 ] are numerous fractures [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap980120.html ] in the surface. Data is missing from the dark lane on the upper right. The surface of Venus [ http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/imgcat/html/object_page/v13_vg261_262.html ] is so hot and oppressive that robot spacecraft [ http://pds-geophys.wustl.edu/venera/ ] landed there [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990124.html ] have lasted for only a few hours. |
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Red, White, and Blue Sky
| Title |
Red, White, and Blue Sky |
| Explanation |
Contrasting colors in this beautiful sunset sky [ http://www.schursastrophotography.com/10dastro/ vensat070107.html ] were captured on June 30 from Clear Creek Canyon Observatory in central Arizona, USA. The twilight scene includes brilliant [ http://www.digitalsky.org.uk/venus/ shadow-of-venus.html ] Venus as the evening star [ http://www.johnpratt.com/items/astronomy/eve_morn.html ], with a bright Saturn just above it, shining through thin clouds. The two wandering [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070407.html ] planets [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010601.html ] were a mere 1 degree apart or so, about twice the width of the full Moon rising above the eastern horizon on the other side of the sky. In fact, such serene skyviews [ http://www.spaceweather.com/ ] were possible from all over planet Earth as Venus and Saturn approached a conjunction [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astronomical_conjunction# Conjunctions_of_planets_in_right_ascension_2005-2020 ]. Regulus, alpha star of the constellation Leo [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo_(constellation) ], is above and to the left of the close planetary pairing. At dusk, lights in tonight's sky will also feature Venus and Saturn low in the west and separated by about 2 degrees. |
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Venus' Evening Loop
| Title |
Venus' Evening Loop |
| Explanation |
From September 2000 through March 2001, astronomer Tunc Tezel patiently photographed the planet Venus on 25 different dates as it wandered [ http://zebu.uoregon.edu/~js/ast221/lectures/ lec06.html ] through the evening twilight. The pictures were taken from the same spot on the campus of the Middle East Technical University near Ankara, Turkey, and timed so that for each photo the Sun was [ http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/RS_OneYear.html ] 7 degrees below the horizon. Carefully registering and combining the pictures, he produced this composite image -- a stunning demonstration of Venus' grand [ http://stoner.eps.mcgill.ca/~bud/craters/ FaceOfVenus.html ] looping sky motion [ http://sunra.colorado.edu/david/ch1.html ] during its recent stint as planet Earth's evening star [ http://www.library.utoronto.ca/utel/rp/poems/ longfe10.html ]. As indicated, the first picture, taken September 28, 2000, finds Venus [ http://www.windows.ucar.edu/cgi-bin/tour_def/venus/ morning_star.html ] close to the western horizon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990619.html ] and drifting south (left) with the passing days. By December however, Venus [ http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/planets/ venuspage.html ] was climbing well above the horizon after sunset and in January 2001 it reached its maximum apparent distance (elongation [ http://astrosun.tn.cornell.edu/courses/astro201/ planet_view.htm ]) from the Sun. March found Venus [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010308.html ] falling from the evening sky while moving rapidly north, finally appearing (far right) as a faint dot against the sunset glow on March 24. This month, Venus rises before dawn as the brilliant morning star [ http://stardate.utexas.edu/resources/ faqs/049.html ]. |
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A Radar Image of Venus
| Title |
A Radar Image of Venus |
| Explanation |
The largest radio telescopes in the world are working together to create a new map of the surface of Venus. The surface of Venus [ http://www.nineplanets.org/venus.html ] is unusually hidden by a thick atmosphere [ http://bigmac.civil.mtu.edu/public_html/classes/ce459/projects/t15/r15.html ] of mostly carbon dioxide [ http://scifun.chem.wisc.edu/chemweek/CO2/CO2.html ] gas. These thick clouds [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap960923.html ] are transparent, however, to radar signals [ http://spaceplace.jpl.nasa.gov/srtm_makemap3.htm ] sent and received from Earth. The two radio telescopes [ http://www.setileague.org/otherweb/othrtele.htm ] generating the most powerful radar ever are the Arecibo Telescope [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap981129.html ] in Puerto Rico [ http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/rq.html ] and the new Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope [ http://www.gb.nrao.edu/GBT/GBT.html ] in West Virginia [ http://www.state.wv.us/ ]. The new survey will resolve details as fine a one-kilometer across, and will be inspected for changes since the last major radar map [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap991128.html ] was made by NASA's Magellan spacecraft [ http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/magellan/ ] that orbited Venus [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/venus.html ] from 1990 to 1994. Pictured above [ http://www.aoc.nrao.edu/pr/gbtfirstsci.html ] is part of a preliminary image showing details as small as five-kilometers across. |
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A Daylight Eclipse of Venus
| Title |
A Daylight Eclipse of Venus |
| Explanation |
Something was about to happen. Just two days ago, two of the three celestial objects easily visible during the day appeared to collide. But actually, Earth's Moon [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moon ] passed well in front of the distant planet Venus [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070501.html ]. The occultation [ http://www.spaceweather.com/eclipses/gallery_18jun07_page2.htm ] was caught from Switzerland [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Switzerland ] in the hours before sunset [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap050620.html ]. Moments after this image was taken, the Moon, visible as the crescent on the right of the above image, eclipsed Venus [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap061030.html ], appearing near half phase [ http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/astronomy/moon/Phases.shtml ] on the lower left. Clouds [ http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/cld/cldtyp/home.rxml ] that once threatened to obscure the whole event [ http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/home/7957837.html ], were visible on the far left. About 90 minutes [ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=co31wxGosN4 ] later, Venus re-appeared just to the right of the bright crescent [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060618.html ]. |
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Planets over Pony Express La
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| Title |
Planets over Pony Express Lake |
| Explanation |
Beautiful sunset sky colors [ http://webexhibits.org/causesofcolor/14B.html ] are reflected in Pony Express [ http://www.ponyexpress.org/history.htm ] Lake in this twilight skyview [ http://www.pbase.com/missouri_skies/image/82364390 ] from northern Missouri, USA, planet Earth. Recorded on Monday, a two day old crescent Moon and brilliant planet Venus shine through thin clouds. Joining the conjunction [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070704.html ] on the right of the Moon's sunlit crescent is fellow wanderer [ http://www.nasm.si.edu/ceps/etp/discovery/ disc_ancient.html ] Saturn, with Regulus, alpha star of the constellation Leo, above and right of Venus. Moonlight and Venus light [ http://www.digitalsky.org.uk/venus/shadow-of-venus.html ] streak the almost-calm lake waters. |
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