Astronomy Picture of the Day
Discover the cosmos!
Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is
featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.
2014 May 9
Halley Dust and Milky Way
Image Credit &
Copyright:
Mike Taylor
Explanation:
The early morning
hours of May 6 were moonless when grains of
cosmic dust streaked through dark skies.
Swept up as planet Earth plows through
dusty debris streams left behind periodic Comet Halley,
the annual meteor shower is known as the
Eta
Aquarids.
This inspired exposure captures a meteor streak moving left right
through the frame.
Its trail points back across the arc of the Milky Way to the
shower's
radiant above the local
horizon in the constellation Aquarius.
Known for speed Eta Aquarid meteors move fast,
entering the atmosphere at about 66 kilometers
per second.
Still waters of the small pond near Albion, Maine, USA
reflect the starry scene and the orange glow of
nearby artificial lights scattered by a low cloud bank.
Of course, northern hemisphere skygazers are expecting a
new meteor shower on
May 24, the Camelopardalids,
caused by dust from periodic comet 209P/LINEAR.
Tomorrow's picture: light-weekend
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Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(
MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell (
UMCP)
NASA Official: Phillip Newman
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