                        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 July 1

                      The Solar System's Planet Trails
                     Image Credit & Copyright: Zheng Zhi

   Explanation: Stars trail through a clear morning sky in this postcard
   from a rotating planet. The timelapse image is constructed from
   consecutive exposures made over nearly three hours with a camera fixed
   to a tripod beside the Forbidden City in Beijing, China on June 24.
   Arcing above the eastern horizon after the series of exposures began, a
   waning crescent Moon left the brightest streak and watery reflection.
   On that date the planets of the Solar System were also lined up along
   the ecliptic and left their own trails before sunrise. Saturn was first
   to rise on that morning and the ringed planet's trail starts close to
   the top right edge, almost out of the frame. Innermost planet Mercury
   rose only just before the Sun though. It left the shortest trail,
   visible against the twilight near the horizon at the far left. Uranus
   and Neptune are faint and hard to find, but mingled with the star
   trails the Solar System's planet trails are all labeled in the scene.

                  Tomorrow's picture: analemmas from a can
     __________________________________________________________________

       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.

