                        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.

                               2024 August 15

                            Late Night Vallentuna
           Image Credit & Copyright: P-M Hedén (Clear Skies, TWAN)

   Explanation: Bright Mars and even brighter Jupiter are in close
   conjunction just above the pine trees in this post-midnight skyscape
   from Vallentuna, Sweden. Taken on August 12 during a geomagnetic storm,
   the snapshot records the glow of aurora borealis or northern lights,
   beaming from the left side of the frame. Of course on that date Perseid
   meteors rained through planet Earth's skies, grains of dust from the
   shower's parent, periodic comet Swift-Tuttle. The meteor streak at the
   upper right is a Perseid plowing through the atmosphere at about 60
   kilometers per second. Also well-known in in Earth's night sky, the
   bright Pleides star cluster shines below the Perseid meteor streak. In
   Greek myth, the Pleiades were seven daughters of the astronomical titan
   Atlas and sea-nymph Pleione. The Pleiades and their parents' names are
   given to the cluster's nine brightest stars.

               Gallery: Perseid Meteor Shower 2024 and Aurorae
                     Tomorrow's picture: meteor borealis
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
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