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.

                              2020 February 18

                  Orion over the Central Bohemian Highlands
                   Image Credit & Copyright: Vojtěch Bauer

   Explanation: Do you recognize this constellation? Setting past the
   Central Bohemian Highlands in the Czech Republic is Orion, one of the
   most identifiable star groupings on the sky and an icon familiar to
   humanity for over 30,000 years. Orion has looked pretty much the same
   during this time and should continue to look the same for many
   thousands of years into the future. Prominent Orion is high in the sky
   at sunset this time of year, a recurring sign of (modern) winter in
   Earth's northern hemisphere and summer in the south. The featured
   picture is a composite of over thirty images taken from the same
   location and during the same night last month. Below and slightly to
   the left of Orion's three-star belt is the Orion Nebula, while four of
   the bright stars surrounding the belt are, clockwise, Sirius (far left,
   blue), Betelgeuse (top, orange, unusually faint), Aldebaran (far
   right), and Rigel (below). As future weeks progress, Orion will set
   increasingly earlier.

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