Subj : Daily APOD Report
To   : All
From : Alan Ianson
Date : Fri Aug 04 2023 01:58:22

                        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.

                                2023 August 4

                             Moonrays of August
                   Image Credit & Copyright: Gianni Tumino

   Explanation: A Full Moon rose as the Sun set on August 1. Near perigee,
   the closest point in its almost moonthly orbit, the brighter than
   average lunar disk illuminated night skies around planet Earth as the
   second supermoon of 2023. Seen here above Ragusa, Sicily, cloud banks
   cast diverging shadows through the supermoonlit skies, creating
   dramatic lunar crepuscular rays. The next Full Moon in 2023 will also
   shine on an August night. Rising as the Sun sets on August 30/31, this
   second Full Moon in a month is known as a Blue Moon. Blue moons occur
   only once every 2 or 3 years because lunar phases take almost a
   calendar month (29.5 days) to go through a complete cycle. But August's
   Blue Moon will also be near perigee, the third supermoon in 2023.

                      Tomorrow's picture: a robin's egg
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
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                             & Michigan Tech. U.

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