Subj : Daily APOD Report
To   : All
From : Alan Ianson
Date : Sun Feb 25 2024 00:32:42

                        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.

                              2024 February 25
    A green aurora fills a star filled sky. A mountain and a lake are in
    the foreground. The aurora may resemble, to some, a flying or rising
     Phoenix. Please see the explanation for more detailed information.

                        A Phoenix Aurora over Iceland
   Image Credit & Copyright: Hallgrimur P. Helgason; Rollover Annotation:
                                Judy Schmidt

   Explanation: All of the other aurora watchers had gone home. By 3:30 am
   in Iceland, on a quiet September night, much of that night's auroras
   had died down. Suddenly, unexpectedly, a new burst of particles
   streamed down from space, lighting up the Earth's atmosphere once
   again. This time, surprisingly, pareidoliacally, the night lit up with
   an amazing shape reminiscent of a giant phoenix. With camera equipment
   at the ready, two quick sky images were taken, followed immediately by
   a third of the land. The mountain in the background is Helgafell, while
   the small foreground river is called Kald+í, both located about 30
   kilometers north of Iceland's capital Reykjav+¡k. Seasoned skywatchers
   will note that just above the mountain, toward the left, is the
   constellation of Orion, while the Pleiades star cluster is also visible
   just above the frame center. The 2016 aurora, which lasted only a
   minute and was soon gone forever -- would possibly be dismissed as a
   fanciful fable -- were it not captured in the featured,
   digitally-composed, image mosaic.

     Your Sky Surprise: What picture did APOD feature on your birthday?
                                 (post 1995)
                       Tomorrow's picture: open space
     __________________________________________________________________

       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Amber Straughn; Specific rights apply.
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                      A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
                           NASA Science Activation
                             & Michigan Tech. U.

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