                        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.

                              2021 December 19

                       Planetary Alignment over Italy
                  Image Credit & Copyright: Antonio Finazzi

   Explanation: It is not a coincidence that planets line up. That's
   because all of the planets orbit the Sun in (nearly) a single sheet
   called the plane of the ecliptic. When viewed from inside that plane --
   as Earth dwellers are likely to do -- the planets all appear confined
   to a single band. It is a coincidence, though, when three of the
   brightest planets all appear in nearly the same direction. Such a
   coincidence was captured earlier this month. Featured above (right to
   left), Venus, Saturn, and Jupiter were all imaged together in a line
   just after sunset, from the San Fermo Hills, Bergamo, Italy. Joining
   the alignment are Earth's Moon, and the position of the more distant
   Uranus. Bands of clouds streak across the sky toward the setting Sun.
   As Comet Leonard fades, this planetary alignment -- absent the Moon --
   should persist for the rest of the month.

   Discovery + Outreach: Graduate student research position open for APOD
                     Tomorrow's picture: comet fireball
     __________________________________________________________________

       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
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                             & Michigan Tech. U.

