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 September 5
The featured image shows a dense line of dark dust that appears like cliffs in the Carina Nebula as captured by the
Webb Space Telescope.
Please see the explanation for more detailed information.

Carina Cliffs from the Webb Space Telescope
Image Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI

These cliffs were created by stars. The destructive winds and energetic light from the stars in the open cluster eroded away part of a mountain of dark interstellar dust. Several of these stars can be seen near the top of this highly detailed image taken by the James Webb Space Telescope. The large mirror and ability to see dust-piercing light has enabled it to capture fascinating details in the dust and hundreds of previously hidden stars. The jagged cliffs in part of Carina are similar to the facial profile of a famous poet. The southern constellation of Carina can be seen from these cliffs.

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Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
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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 September 6
The featured image shows a dark cloud topped with
a bright multicolored cloud.
Please see the explanation for more detailed information.

An Iridescent Pileus Cloud over China
Image Credit & Copyright: Jiaqi Sun (孙嘉琪)

Explanation: Yes, but how many dark clouds have a multicolored lining? Pictured, behind this darker cloud, is a pileus iridescent cloud, a group of water droplets that have a uniformly similar size and so together diffract different colors of sunlight by different amounts. The featured image was taken last month in Pu'er, Yunnan Province, China. Also captured were unusual cloud ripples above the pileus cloud. The formation of a rare pileus cloud capping a common cumulus cloud is an indication that the lower cloud is expanding upward and might well develop into a storm.

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< | Archive | Submissions | Index | Search | Calendar | RSS | Education | About APOD | Discuss | >

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,
NASA Science Activation
& Michigan Tech. U.