Posted on 11/26/2015 9:20:51 PM PST by SunkenCiv
Explanation: Planet Earth's horizon stretches across this recent Solar System group portrait, seen from the southern hemisphere's Las Campanas Observatory. Taken before dawn it traces the ecliptic with a line-up familiar to November's early morning risers. Toward the east are bright planets Venus, Mars, and Jupiter as well as Regulus, alpha star of the constellation Leo. Of course the planets are immersed in the faint glow of zodiacal light, visible from the dark site rising at an angle from the horizon. Sometimes known as the false dawn, it's no accident the zodiacal light and planets both lie along the ecliptic. Formed in the flattened protoplanetary disk, the Solar System's planet's all orbit near the ecliptic plane, while dust near the plane scatters sunlight, the source of the faint zodiacal glow.
(Excerpt) Read more at 129.164.179.22 ...
[Credit and Copyright: Yuri Beletsky (Carnegie Las Campanas Observatory, TWAN)]
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If it’s THE astronomy pic of the day, how did we get two?
/S
Great photos.
one 25th one 26th
Yeah, I was suspicious about that too. At first, when the original loaded, I thought I'd somehow managed to post last month's or something (I'd managed to get two days behind in APoD postings, and was doing three at once, easy to get confused). ;')
Nice
Definitely, very nice lookin’ skies we got right now. :’)
Winter stars are sweet.
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