Skip to main content

Posted by Specola

NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day:

It is not a coincidence that planets line up. That's because all of the planets orbit the Sun in (nearly) a single sheet called the plane of the ecliptic. When viewed from inside that plane -- as Earth dwellers are likely to do -- the planets all appear confined to a single band. It is a coincidence, though, when three of the brightest planets all appear in nearly the same direction. Such a coincidence was captured earlier this month. Featured above (right to left), Venus, Saturn, and Jupiter were all imaged together in a line just after sunset, from the San Fermo Hills, Bergamo, Italy. Joining the alignment are Earth's Moon, and the position of the more distant Uranus. Bands of clouds streak across the sky toward the setting Sun. As Comet Leonard fades, this planetary alignment -- absent the Moon -- should persist for the rest of the month. Discovery + Outreach: Graduate student research position open for APOD

Photo by Antonio Finazzi

Snohomish, Skagit and Island County

Giving Kids in Need the Chance to Read
  Non-profit organization - Seattle, WA

Click the Image to learn more about us

Hunger impacts all of us | 360-435-1631

Read more from Pepe's Painting LLC

FLO JAPANESE RESTAURANT
425-453-4005 - 1150 106th Ave NE Bellevue, WA 98004