2026年1月12日
Meteor Dust
Image Credit & Copyright: Xu Chen
Explanation: What’s happening to this meteor? It is shedding its outer layers as it passes through the Earth’s atmosphere and heats up. The sudden high temperatures not only cause the bright glow along the dramatic streak but also melt and vaporize the meteor’s component rock and ice, creating dust. Wind in the atmosphere typically blows this dust away over the next few seconds, leaving no visible trace after only a few minutes. Much of this dust will eventually settle down to the Earth. The featured image was captured in mid-December, coincident with the Geminids meteor shower. On the upper left is Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky, while in the foreground is fog-engulfed Huangshan, the Yellow Mountains of eastern China.
Tomorrow’s picture: launched from the Sun
流星尘埃
影像提供与版权: Xu Chen
说明: 这颗流星发生了什么事？当流星穿越地球大气层并加热时，它正在剥落其外层物质。突如其来的高温不仅使流星划过一道壮观的光迹，还会熔化并汽化流星的岩石和冰，形成尘埃。大气中的风通常会在接下来的几秒钟内吹散这些尘埃，几分钟后便会消失得无影无踪。大部分尘埃最终会沉降到 地球上。这张主题影像拍摄于12月中旬，正值双子座流星雨期间。左上方是夜空中最亮的恒星——天狼星，而前景则是被雾气笼罩的黄山，位于中国东部。
明日的图片: launched from the Sun
