Todays pic is another one that's done just because it looks good.
Stars and Planets in the Halo of the Moon
Photographed on March 13th from Caledon, Ontario, Canada, a bright Moon was surrounded by this lovely halo. Planet Jupiter and stars Procyon, Castor, and Pollux also appear within the circle of lunar light. Castor and Pollux, twins in Greek Mythology, are appropriately bright stars of the constellation Gemini while Procyon is the brightest star in Canis Minor. The circular halo is produced by six-sided ice crystals in thin high-altitude clouds, which refract the moonlight and give the halo a characteristic radius of 22 degrees. For persistent skygazers such apparitions are relatively easy to see when the Moon and Sun illuminate planet Earth's skies.
Credit & Copyright: Lauri Kangas
A larger version of this piccy can be found here. Actually it's two pics in one, one with the captions and one without.
Previous Pic Of The Day posts
20th Mar 03
19th Mar 03Courtesy of Mark G
18th Mar 03
17th Mar 03
16th Mar 03
15th Mar 03
14th Mar 03
Stars and Planets in the Halo of the Moon
Photographed on March 13th from Caledon, Ontario, Canada, a bright Moon was surrounded by this lovely halo. Planet Jupiter and stars Procyon, Castor, and Pollux also appear within the circle of lunar light. Castor and Pollux, twins in Greek Mythology, are appropriately bright stars of the constellation Gemini while Procyon is the brightest star in Canis Minor. The circular halo is produced by six-sided ice crystals in thin high-altitude clouds, which refract the moonlight and give the halo a characteristic radius of 22 degrees. For persistent skygazers such apparitions are relatively easy to see when the Moon and Sun illuminate planet Earth's skies.
Credit & Copyright: Lauri Kangas
A larger version of this piccy can be found here. Actually it's two pics in one, one with the captions and one without.
Previous Pic Of The Day posts
20th Mar 03
19th Mar 03Courtesy of Mark G
18th Mar 03
17th Mar 03
16th Mar 03
15th Mar 03
14th Mar 03