                        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.

                                2022 March 12

                            Point Reyes Milky Way
                     Image Credit & Copyright: Dan Zafra

   Explanation: Northern winter constellations and a long arc of the Milky
   Way are setting in this night skyscape looking toward the Pacific Ocean
   from Point Reyes on planet Earth's California coast. Sirius, alpha star
   of Canis Major, is prominent below the starry arc toward the left.
   Orion's yellowish Betelgeuse, Aldebaran in Taurus, and the blue tinted
   Pleiades star cluster also find themselves between Milky Way and
   northwestern horizon near the center of the scene. The nebulae visible
   in the series of exposures used to construct this panoramic view were
   captured in early March, but are just too faint to be seen with the
   unaided eye. On that northern night their expansive glow includes the
   reddish semi-circle of Barnard's Loop in Orion and NGC 1499 above and
   right of the Pleiades, also known as the California Nebula.

                    Tomorrow's picture: colorful airglow
     __________________________________________________________________

       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
                NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices
                      A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC
                             & Michigan Tech. U.

