Dark Sun over Ternate
Explanation:
A dark Sun hangs in the clearing sky over a volcanic planet
in this morning sea and skycape.
It was taken during
this week's total solar eclipse,
a dramatic snapshot from along the
narrow path of totality
in the dark shadow of a New Moon.
Earth's Indonesian isle of Ternate, North Maluku lies
in the foreground.
The sky is still bright near the eastern horizon though,
beyond the region's flattened volcanic peaks and outside
the
Moon's umbral
shadow.
In fact, near the equator the dark lunar
umbra is rushing eastward
across Earth's surface at about
1,700 kilometers (1,100 miles) per hour.
Shining through the thin clouds, around the Sun's
silhouette is the alluring glow of the solar corona,
only easily seen during totality.
An inspiring sight
for eclipse watchers,
this solar corona is the tenuous, hot outer atmosphere of the Sun.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
