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APOD: 2023 December 27 Á Rainbow Aurora over Icelandic Waterfall
| << Yesterday | 27.12.2023 | Tomorrow >> |
Credit & Copyright: Stefano Pellegrini
Explanation:
Yes, but can your aurora do this?
First, yes,
auroras can look like
rainbows even though they are completely different phenomena.
Auroras are caused by Sun-created particles being channeled into
Earth's atmosphere by
Earth's magnetic field, and
create colors by exciting
atoms at different heights.
Conversely, rainbows are created by sunlight backscattering off falling raindrops,
and different colors are
refracted by slightly different
angles.
Unfortunately, auroras canÁt create waterfalls,
but if you plan well and are lucky enough, you can photograph them together.
The featured picture is composed of several images
taken on the same night last month near the
Skö¨gafoss waterfall in
Iceland.
The planning centered on capturing the
central band of our
Milky Way galaxy over the
picturesque
cascade.
By luck, a
spectacular aurora soon appeared just below the curving arch of the Milky Way.
Far in the background, the
Pleiades star cluster and the
Andromeda galaxy can be found.
Your Sky Surprise:
What picture did APOD feature on your birthday? (post 1995)
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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: aurora borealis
Publications with words: aurora borealis
See also: