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 May 23

                      Ghost Fungus to Magellanic Cloud
                     Image Credit & Copyright: Gill Fry

   Explanation: Stars shine and satellites glint in this clear, dark,
   night sky over Wannon Falls Reserve, South West Victoria, Australia. In
   fact the fuzzy, faint apparition above the tree tops is the only cloud
   visible, also known as the Large Magellanic Cloud, satellite galaxy of
   our own Milky Way. In the foreground, an Omphalotus nidiformis (ghost
   fungus) from planet Earth shines with a surprisingly bright
   bioluminescence. Like the Magellanic cloud, the ghost fungus was easily
   seen with the eye. Its ghostly glow was actually a dull green, but it
   appears bright green in digital camera picture. Two images were blended
   to create the scene. One focused on the distant stars and Large
   Magellanic Cloud some 160,000 light-years away. Another was focused on
   the foreground and glowing fungus several light-nanoseconds from the
   camera lens.

                Tomorrow's picture: the grand canyon of Mars
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
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