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.

                                2026 March 2
      [2]The featured image shows a dusty starfield with intricate dust
   filaments all over. Red, blue, and brown nebulas will the field. Please
             see the explanation for more detailed information.

              The Dusty Surroundings of Orion and the Pleiades
               Image Credit & Copyright: [3]Ignacio Fernández

   Explanation: How well do you know the night sky? OK, but how well can
   you identify famous sky objects in a [4]very deep image? Either way,
   here is a test: see if you can find some well-known [5]night-sky icons
   in a deep image filled with filaments of normally faint [6]dust and
   gas. [7]This image contains the [8]Pleiades star cluster, [9]Barnard's
   Loop, [10]Orion Nebula, [11]Aldebaran, [12]Betelgeuse, [13]Witch Head
   Nebula, [14]Eridanus Loop, and the [15]California Nebula. To find their
   real locations, [16]here is an annotated image version. The reason this
   [17]task might be difficult is similar to the reason it is initially
   hard to identify familiar [18]constellations in a very [19]dark sky:
   the tapestry of our night sky has an extremely deep [20]hidden
   complexity. The [21]featured composite reveals some of [22]this
   complexity in a 16 hours of sky exposure in dark skies over
   [23]Granada, [24]Spain.

                      Tonight: [25]Total Lunar Eclipse
                        Tomorrow's picture: over Mars
     __________________________________________________________________

      [26]< | [27]Archive | [28]Submissions | [29]Index | [30]Search |
   [31]Calendar | [32]RSS | [33]Education | [34]About APOD | [35]Discuss |
                                    [36]>
     __________________________________________________________________

    Authors & editors: [37]Robert Nemiroff ([38]MTU) & [39]Jerry Bonnell
                                 ([40]UMCP)
          NASA Official: Amber Straughn [41]Specific rights apply.
            [42]NASA Web Privacy, [43]Accessibility, [44]Notices;
                A service of: [45]ASD at [46]NASA / [47]GSFC,
                         [48]NASA Science Activation
                           & [49]Michigan Tech. U.

References

   1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
   2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2603/DustyOrionPleiades_Fernandez_5000.jpg
   3. https://www.instagram.com/igneis.nightscapes/
   4. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250302.html
   5. https://science.nasa.gov/skywatching/whats-up/
   6. https://science.nasa.gov/universe/dust-in-the-stellar-wind-a-cosmological-primer/
   7. https://www.instagram.com/p/DHmDOSZsc9S/
   8. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260223.html
   9. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap090224.html
  10. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap251113.html
  11. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aldebaran
  12. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap200511.html
  13. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap231004.html
  14. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap200323.html
  15. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250310.html
  16. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2603/DustyOrionPleiades_Fernandez_960_annotated.jpg
  17. https://science.nasa.gov/citizen-science/
  18. https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/constellations/
  19. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap200408.html
  20. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230717.html
  21. https://www.instagram.com/p/DHmDOSZsc9S/
  22. https://i2-prod.mirror.co.uk/incoming/article27598932.ece/ALTERNATES/s1200d/1_SWNS_SURPRISED_DOG_008.jpg
  23. https://youtu.be/bkCD6yfiRwg
  24. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spain
  25. https://science.nasa.gov/solar-system/moon/march-2026-total-lunar-eclipse-your-questions-answered/
  26. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260301.html
  27. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
  28. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html
  29. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html
  30. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search
  31. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html
  32. https://apod.com/feed.rss
  33. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html
  34. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html
  35. https://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=260302
  36. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260303.html
  37. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
  38. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
  39. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html
  40. http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  41. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  42. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html
  43. https://www.nasa.gov/general/accessibility/
  44. https://www.nasa.gov/privacy/
  45. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  46. https://www.nasa.gov/
  47. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  48. https://science.nasa.gov/learners
  49. http://www.mtu.edu/