2019 April 26 Southern Cross to Eta Carinae Image Credit & Copyright: Carlos Fairbairn Explanation: Tracking along the southern Milky Way this beautiful celestial mosaic was recorded under dark Brazilian skies. Spanning some 20 degrees it actually starts with the dark expanse of the Coalsack neb […]
2019 April 25 Pan-STARRS Across the Lagoon Image Data Credit: Pan-STARRS, Eric Coles, Martin Pugh – Processing: Eric Coles Explanation: Ridges of glowing interstellar gas and dark dust clouds inhabit the turbulent, cosmic depths of the Lagoon Nebula. Also known as M8, the bright star forming r
2019 April 24 The Shape of the Southern Crab Image Credit: NASA, ESA, STScI Explanation: The symmetric, multi-legged appearance of the Southern Crab Nebula is certainly distinctive. About 7,000 light-years distant toward the southern sky constellation Centaurus, its glowing nested hourglass shapes a
2019 April 23 Meteors, Comet, and Big Dipper over La Palma Image Credit & Copyright: Vincent Duparc Explanation: Meteor showers are caused by streams of solid particles, dust size and larger, moving as a group through space. In most cases, the orbits of these meteor streams can be identified wit
2019 April 22 Mars Methane Mystery Deepens Video Credit: NASA’s GSFC, Scientific Visualization Studio Explanation: The methane mystery on Mars just got stranger. New results from ESA and Roscosmos’ ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter, has unexpectedly not detected methane in the atmosphere of Mars
2019 April 21 Spiral Aurora over Icelandic Divide Image Credit & Copyright: Juan Carlos Casado (TWAN, StarryEarth) Explanation: Admire the beauty but fear the beast. The beauty is the aurora overhead, here taking the form of great green spiral, seen between picturesque clouds with the bright Mo
2019 April 20 Falcon Heavy Launch Close Up Image Credit: SpaceX Explanation: Twenty seven Merlin rocket engines are firing in this close-up of the launch of a Falcon Heavy rocket. Derived from three Falcon 9 first stage rockets with nine Merlin rocket engines each, the Falcon Heavy left NASA’s
2019 April 19 Milky Way in Northern Spring Image Credit & Copyright: Taha Ghouchkanlu (TWAN) Explanation: A postcard from planet Earth, this springtime night skyscape looks over Alandan lake in the Alborz mountains. Taken after local midnight on April 17, the central Milky Way is rising over th
2019 April 18 The Leo Trio Image Credit & Copyright: Markus Bauer Explanation: This group is popular in the northern spring. Famous as the Leo Triplet, the three magnificent galaxies gather in one field of view. Crowd pleasers when imaged with even modest telescopes, they can be introduced indi
2019 April 17 Messier 81 Image Credit & Copyright: Paolo De Salvatore (Zenit Observatory) Explanation: One of the brightest galaxies in planet Earth’s sky is similar in size to our Milky Way Galaxy: big, beautiful Messier 81. Also known as NGC 3031 or Bode’s galaxy for its 18th cent
