Astronomy Picture of the Day

                         Astronomy Picture of the Day

    Discover the cosmos! [1] Each day a different image or photograph of our
 fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a
                           professional astronomer.

                                2019 January 7
                                      [2]
                    Stars, Meteors, and a Comet in Taurus
  Image Credit & Copyright [3] : Juan Carlos Casado [4] (TWAN [5] , Earth and
                                  Stars [6] )

Explanation: This was an unusual night to look in the direction of the Bull.
The constellation Taurus [7]  is always well known for hosting two bright star
clusters -- the Pleaides [8] , visible on the right, and the comparatively
diffuse Hyades [9] , visible on the left. This night last month, however, was
atypically the peak of the Geminid meteor shower [10] , and so several meteors
were caught shooting through the constellation with parallel trails [11] .
More unusually still, Comet Wirtanen [12]  was drifting through the
constellation, here appearing near the image bottom surrounded by a greenish
coma. The comet [13]  was near its brightest as it sped past [14]  the Earth.
The orange star on the upper left is Aldebaran [15] , considered to be the eye
of the Bull. Aldebaran is the brightest star in Taurus and the 15th brightest
star [16]  in the sky. The featured image is a combination of nearly 800
exposures taken from the Spanish [17]  village Albanyà [18] .

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                      Tomorrow's picture: high energy sky

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    Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff [34] (MTU [35] ) & Jerry Bonnell [36]
                                  (UMCP [37] )
          NASA Official:  Phillip Newman Specific rights apply [38] .
              NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices [39]
              A service of: ASD [40]  at NASA [41]  / GSFC [42]
                           & Michigan Tech. U. [43]
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Site notes:
  [1] archivepix.html
  [2] image/1901/Geminids46P_jcc_2000.jpg
  [3] lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  [4] http://www.twanight.org/casado
  [5] http://www.twanight.org
  [6] http://starryearth.com/
  [7] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taurus_(constellation)
  [8] ap150617.html
  [9] ap121224.html
  [10] ap171222.html
  [11]
https://www.khanacademy.org/math/basic-geo/basic-geo-angle/
angles-between-lines/e/parallel_lines_1
  [12] http://www.cometwatch.co.uk/comet-46p-wirtanen/
  [13]
https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/asteroids-comets-and-meteors/comets/in-depth/
  [14] ap181216.html
  [15] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aldebaran
  [16] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_brightest_stars
  [17] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spain
  [18] https://youtu.be/zIIR23JzfXE
  [19] https://www.instagram.com/astronomypicturesdaily/
  [20] https://www.facebook.com/AstronomyPictureOfTheDay
  [21] https://www.reddit.com/r/apod
  [22] http://twitter.com/apod/
  [23] ap190106.html
  [24] archivepix.html
  [25] lib/apsubmit2015.html
  [26] lib/aptree.html
  [27] https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search
  [28] calendar/allyears.html
  [29] /apod.rss
  [30] lib/edlinks.html
  [31] lib/about_apod.html
  [32] http://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=190107
  [33] ap190108.html
  [34] http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
  [35] http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
  [36] https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html
  [37] http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  [38] lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  [39] https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html
  [40] https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  [41] https://www.nasa.gov/
  [42] https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  [43] http://www.mtu.edu/

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