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.

                               2019 August 12

                        Perseid Meteors over Slovakia
                   Image Credit & Copyright: Petr Hor+ílek

   Explanation: Tonight is a good night to see meteors. Comet dust will
   rain down on planet Earth, streaking through dark skies during the peak
   of the annual Perseid Meteor Shower. The featured composite image was
   taken during last year's Perseids from the Poloniny Dark Sky Park in
   Slovakia. The unusual building in the foreground is a planetarium on
   the grounds of Kolonica Observatory. Although the comet dust particles
   travel parallel to each other, the resulting shower meteors clearly
   seem to radiate from a single point on the sky in the eponymous
   constellation Perseus. The radiant effect is due to perspective, as the
   parallel tracks appear to converge at a distance, like train tracks.
   The Perseid Meteor Shower is expected to peak after midnight tonight,
   although unfortunately this year the sky will be brightened by a near
   full Moon.

                  Tomorrow's picture: supernova cannonball
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