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.

                                2021 April 6
        Mars and the Pleiades star cluster set behind one-tree hill.

                  Mars and the Pleiades Beyond Vinegar Hill
                  Image Credit & Copyright: Kristine Richer

   Explanation: Is this just a lonely tree on an empty hill? To start,
   perhaps, but look beyond. There, a busy universe may wait to be
   discovered. First, physically, to the left of the tree, is the planet
   Mars. The red planet, which is the new home to NASA's Perseverance
   rover, remains visible this month at sunset above the western horizon.
   To the tree's right is the Pleiades, a bright cluster of stars
   dominated by several bright blue stars. The featured picture is a
   composite of several separate foreground and background images taken
   within a few hours of each other, early last month, from the same
   location on Vinegar Hill in Milford, Nova Scotia, Canada. At that time,
   Mars was passing slowly, night after night, nearly in front of the
   distant Seven Sisters star cluster. The next time Mars will pass
   angularly as close to the Pleiades as it did in March will be in 2038.

                       Tomorrow's picture: open space
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
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