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Credit & Copyright: Ralf Rohner
Explanation:
Celestial sights of the southern sky shine above a
cloudy planet Earth
in this gorgeous night sky view.
The scene was captured from an airliner's flight deck at 38,000 feet
on a steady westbound ride to Lima, Peru.
To produce
the sharp airborne
astrophotograph,
the best of a series of short
exposures were selected and digitally stacked.
The broad band of the
southern Milky Way begins at top left with
the dark
Coalsack Nebula
and Southern Cross.
Its expanse of diffuse starlight encompasses the
the Carina Nebula and large Gum Nebula toward the right.
Canopus, alpha star of Carina and second brightest star in Earth's
night is easy to spot below the Milky Way, as is the dwarf galaxy
known as the
Large
Magellanic Cloud.
The Small Magellanic cloud just peeks above the cloudy horizon.
Of course, the South Celestial Pole also lies
within the starry southern frame.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: night sky
Publications with words: night sky
See also: