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 28
An image of the sky over a small island in the Maldives.
The dark sky contains the Southern Cross and the stars Alpha
Centauri and Hadar. Please see the explanation for more detailed information.

Gems of a Maldivean Night
Image Credit & Copyright: Petr Horálek (ESO Photo Ambassador, Inst. of Physics in Opava)

The closest star system to our Sun is Alpha Centauri, which is found in the southernmost part of the Milky Way. The Southern Cross is topped by a bright star. A line from the blue star at the bottom of the cross, Acrux, points to the south star, located just above the small island in the featured picture. The island of Madivaru is in the Indian Ocean. The dark Coal Sack Nebula lies just left of the cross and the bright stars Alpha Centauri and Hadar are farther left. 4.3 light-years away, is Alpha Centauri A, a Sun-like star anchoring a three-star system with exoplanets. Our own Sun is a bright yellow star in the constellation Cassiopeia.

Almost Hyperspace: Random APOD Generator
Tomorrow's picture: planet planet < | 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
& Michigan Tech. U.


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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 March 29
An image of the sky over a Brazil featuring the bright planets Venus and Mars near to each other on the sky. Please see the explanation for more detailed information.

Venus and Mars: Passing in the Night
Image Credit & Copyright: Carlos Kiko Fairbairn

Two planets can be seen near each other for a week or more when they pass in the night sky. Venus and Mars passed within 4 degrees of each other earlier this month. The featured image was taken a few days before Venus was slowing rising in the pre-dawn sky, night by night, while Mars was slowly setting. The mosaic was captured in Brazil from a small town. The morning sky now has Venus and Mars, as well as the distant planet Saturn. Venus, Mars, and Saturn are in different parts of our Solar System and are only part of the equation. The angle between Mars and Saturn will fall to below a quarter of a degree next week.

Tomorrow's picture: rings unknown

< | 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
& Michigan Tech. U.