                        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.

                                2025 August 8

                              Dawn of the Crab
                 Image and Text Credit: Bradley E. Schaefer

   Explanation: One of the all-time historic skyscapes occured in July
   1054, when the Crab Supernova blazed into the dawn sky. Chinese court
   astrologers first saw the Guest Star on the morning of 4 July 1054 next
   to the star Tianguan (now cataloged as Zeta Tauri). The supernova
   peaked in late July 1054 a bit brighter than Venus, and was visible in
   the daytime for 23 days. The Guest Star was so bright that every
   culture around the world inevitably discovered the supernova
   independently, although only nine reports survive, including those from
   China, Japan, and Constantinople. This iPhone picture is from Signal
   Hill near Tucson on the morning of 26 July 2025, faithfully re-creates
   the year 1054 Dawn of the Crab, showing the sky as seen by Hohokam
   peoples. The planet Venus, as a stand-in for the supernova, is close to
   the position of what is now the Crab Nebula supernova remnant. Step
   outside on a summer dawn with bright Venus, and ask yourself "What
   would you have thought in ancient times when suddenly seeing the Dawn
   of the Crab?"

                      Tomorrow's picture: light-weekend
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
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                      A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
                           NASA Science Activation
                             & Michigan Tech. U.

