Subj : Daily APOD Report
To   : All
From : Alan Ianson
Date : Fri Dec 30 2022 00:53:58

                        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.

                              2022 December 30

                         Mars and the Star Clusters
                   Image Credit & Copyright: Gabor Balazs

   Explanation: At this year's end Mars still shines brightly in planet
   Earth's night as it wanders through the head-strong constellation
   Taurus. Its bright yellowish hue dominates this starry field of view
   that includes Taurus' alpha star Aldebaran and the Hyades and Pleiades
   star clusters. While red giant Aldebaran appears to anchor the V-shape
   of the Hyades at the left of the frame, Aldebaran is not a member of
   the Hyades star cluster. The Hyades cluster is 151 light-years away
   making it the nearest established open star cluster, but Aldebaran lies
   at less than half that distance, along the same line-of-sight. At the
   right, some 400 light-years distant is the open star cluster cataloged
   as Messier 45, also known as the Pleiades or Seven Sisters. In Greek
   myth, the Pleiades were daughters of the astronomical titan Atlas and
   sea-nymph Pleione.

              Tomorrow's picture: so nice, they named it twice
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
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