﻿ Astronomy Picture of the Day [1]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. 2023 June 26 [2]An orange sky hovers above snow-covered mountains. A blurry line divides the orange sky from a darker sky. In the foreground are hills and a house. Please see the explanation for more detailed information. The Belt of Venus over Mount Everest Image Credit & Copyright: [3]Soumyadeep Mukherjee Explanation: You've surely seen it, but you might not have noticed it. During a cloudless [4]twilight, just before [5]sunrise or after [6]sunset, part of the atmosphere above the horizon appears slightly dark and off-color. Called the [7]Belt of Venus, this transitional band between the dark [8]eclipsed sky and the bright day sky can be seen most prominently in the direction [9]opposite the Sun. Straight above, [10]blue sky is normal sunlight reflecting off the atmosphere, while near the horizon the clear sky can [11]appear more orange or red. In the [12]Belt of Venus, the atmosphere reflects more light from the setting (or rising) Sun and so [13]appears more red. Featured here, the [14]Belt of Venus was photographed over several [15]Himalayan mountains including, second from the right, [16]Mount Everest, the [17]tallest mountain on [18]Earth. Although usually [19]not mentioned, the belt is [20]frequently [21]caught [22]by [23]accident [24]in [25]other [26]photographs. Tomorrow's picture: ultraviolet red planet __________________________________________________________________ [27]< | [28]Archive | [29]Submissions | [30]Index | [31]Search | [32]Calendar | [33]RSS | [34]Education | [35]About APOD | [36]Discuss | [37]> __________________________________________________________________ Authors & editors: [38]Robert Nemiroff ([39]MTU) & [40]Jerry Bonnell ([41]UMCP) NASA Official: Phillip Newman [42]Specific rights apply. [43]NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices A service of: [44]ASD at [45]NASA / [46]GSFC, [47]NASA Science Activation & [48]Michigan Tech. U. References 1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html 2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2306/BeltofEverest_Mukherjee_4000_annotated.jpg 3. https://www.instagram.com/soumyadeepmukherjeephotos/ 4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twilight 5. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap220924.html 6. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230328.html 7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belt_of_Venus 8. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap030822.html 9. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap190624.html 10. https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/blue-sky/en/ 11. https://www.universetoday.com/77115/why-is-the-sunset-red/ 12. https://skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-blogs/the-belt-of-venus/ 13. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap201111.html 14. https://youtu.be/qA4umk8HGMY 15. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Himalayas 16. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap110417.html 17. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mountain_peaks_by_prominence 18. https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/earth/overview/ 19. https://img.huffingtonpost.com/asset/5bad2b9b2200003401da9338.jpeg 20. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap011209.html 21. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap010601.html 22. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap180705.html 23. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap120529.html 24. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap191011.html 25. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230509.html 26. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap010501.html 27. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230625.html 28. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html 29. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html 30. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html 31. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search 32. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html 33. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod.rss 34. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html 35. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html 36. https://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=230626 37. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230627.html 38. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html 39. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/ 40. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html 41. http://www.astro.umd.edu/ 42. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply 43. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html 44. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/ 45. https://www.nasa.gov/ 46. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/ 47. https://science.nasa.gov/learners 48. http://www.mtu.edu/