APOD: 2009 August 18 - The Milky Way Over the Badlands
Explanation: Why take a picture of just the Badlands when you can take one that also shows the spectacular sky above it?

Just such a picture, actually a digital stitched panorama of four images, was taken in late June near midnight, looking southwest.

In the foreground, the

unusual buttes of the Badlands Wall, part of the Badlands National Park in South Dakota, USA, were momentarily illuminated by flashlight during a long duration exposure of the background night sky.

The mountain-like buttes visible are composed of soft rock that show sharp erosion features from wind and water.

The South Dakota Badlands also contain ancient beds rich with easy-to-find fossils.

Some fossils are over 25 million years old and hold clues to the evolutionary origins of the horse and the

saber-toothed tiger.

Bright Jupiter dominates the sky on the left just above the buttes, while the spectacular Milky Way Galaxy runs down the image right.

APOD: 2009 July 29 - The Milky Way Over Devils Tower
Explanation: Was Devils Tower once an explosive volcano?

Famous for its appearance in films such as Close Encounters, the origin of Devil's Tower in

Wyoming, USA is still debated, with a leading hypothesis holding that it is a hardened lava plume that probably never reached the surface to become a volcano.

The lighter rock that once surrounded the dense volcanic neck has now eroded away, leaving the dramatic tower.

High above, the central band of the Milky Way galaxy arches across the sky.

Many notable sky objects are visible, including dark strands of the Pipe Nebula and the reddish Lagoon Nebula to the tower's right.

Green grass and trees line the moonlit foreground, while clouds appear near the horizon to

the tower's left.

Unlike many other international landmarks, mountaineers are permitted to climb Devils Tower.

APOD: 2009 July 4 - Mount Rushmore's Starry Night
Explanation:

This starry night sky sparkles above the Black Hills of South Dakota and the United States' Mount Rushmore National Park.

The historic site features enormous sculptures of four US presidents; George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln, carved into the southeast face of granite cliffs.

Above the monumental symbols of the

country's independence and early history, the night features stars and constellations familiar to northern skygazers around the world.

Most noticeable are the stars of Ursa Major and the asterism known as the Big Dipper, almost resting upright along the cliff edge near picture center.

Follow the arc of the Big Dipper's handle to get to Arcturus, the bright yellowish star in the lower left corner.

Of course, a line extending through the dipper's two right most stars points to the upper right toward Polaris, planet Earth's North Star.

APOD: 2009 February 19 - Mauna Kea Milky Way Panorama
Explanation:

Aloha and welcome to a breathtaking skyscape.

The dreamlike panoramic view looks out from the 4,200 meter volcanic summit of Mauna Kea, Hawai'i, across a layer of clouds toward a starry night sky and the rising Milky Way.

Anchoring the scene on the far left is the dome of the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT), with north star Polaris shining beyond the dome to the right.

Farther right, headed by bright

star Deneb, the Northern Cross asterism is embedded along the plane of the Milky Way as it peeks above the horizon.

Both Northern Cross and brilliant white Vega hang over a foreground grouping of cinder cones.

Near the center are the reddish nebulae, stars and dust clouds of the central Milky Way.

Below, illumination from the city lights of Hilo creates an eerie, greenish glow in the clouds.

Red supergiant star Antares shines above the Milky Way's central bulge while bright Alpha Centauri lies still farther right, along the dusty galactic plane.

Finally, at the far right is the large Gemini North Observatory.

The compact group of stars known as the

Southern Cross is just left of the telescope dome.

Need some help identifying the stars?

Just slide your cursor over the picture, or download this smaller, labeled panorama.

APOD: 2009 January 27 - The Milky Way Over Mauna Kea
Explanation: Have you ever seen the band of our Milky Way Galaxy?

In a clear sky from a dark location at the right time, a faint band of light becomes visible across the sky.

Soon after your eyes become dark adapted, you might spot the band for the first time.

It may then become obvious.

Then spectacular.

One reason for a growing astonishment might be the realization that this

fuzzy swath contains billions of stars and is the disk of our very own spiral galaxy.

Since we are inside this disk, the band appears to encircle the Earth.

Visible in the above image, high above in the night sky, the band of the Milky Way Galaxy arcs.

The bright spot just below the band is the planet Jupiter.

In the foreground lies the moonlit caldera of the volcano Haleakala, located on the island of Maui in

Hawaii, USA.

A close look near the horizon will reveal light clouds and the dark but enormous Mauna Kea volcano on the Big Island of Hawaii.

If you have never seen the Milky Way band or recognized the planet Jupiter, this year may be your chance.

Because 2009 is the International Year of Astronomy, an opportunity to look through a window that peers deep into the universe may be coming to a location near you.

APOD: 2008 December 13 - The 60 inch Reflector
Explanation:

On the night of December 13, 1908, 100 years ago today, the 60-inch diameter reflecting telescope of Mount Wilson Observatory was first tested

on the stars.

It became the first successful large reflecting telescope.

The 60-inch reflector demonstrated a scalable design that used a mirror to gather faint starlight, rather than a large and more difficult to support lens, becoming the granddaddy of all, even larger, modern telescopes.

Now-famous astronomers, including Harlow Shapley and Edwin Hubble, were able to use the 60-inch reflector to embark on a new kind of exploration of stars, distant galaxies, and the nature of the universe.

Still looking skyward a century after its first light, the

historic telescope is seen here pointing toward one of the most recognizable celestial events of 2008, the remarkable conjunction of Moon, Venus, and Jupiter.

APOD: 2008 September 29 - A True Image from False Kiva
Explanation:

Is there any place in the world you could see a sight like this?

Yes!

This digital mosaic

shows the night sky as seen from False Kiva in Canyonlands National Park, eastern Utah, USA.

Diving into the Earth far in the distance is part of the central band of our Milky Way Galaxy.

Much closer, the planet Jupiter is visible as the bright point just to band's left.

Closer still are the park's picturesque buttes and mesas

lit by a crescent moon.

In the foreground is the cave housing a stone circle of unknown origin named False Kiva.

The cave itself was briefly lit by flashlight during the exposure.

Astrophotographer Wally Pacholka reports that getting to the cave was no easy trek.

Also, mountain lions were a concern while waiting alone in the dark to record the mosaic.

APOD: 2008 August 14 - Perseid Trail
Explanation:

This bright and colorful meteor flashed through Tuesday's early morning skies, part of the annual Perseid Meteor Shower.

The lovely image is one of over 350 frames captured on August 12 from the Joshua Tree National Park, in California, USA .

Dust from comet Swift-Tuttle is responsible for the Perseids, creating the northern hemisphere's regular summer sky show.

The comet dust is vaporized as it enters the atmosphere at upwards of 60 kilometers per second, producing visible trails that begin at altitudes of around 100 kilometers.

Of course, the trails point back to a radiant point in the constellation Perseus, giving the meteor shower its name.

Recorded after moonset, the starry background features the bright star Vega on the right.

Extending below the western horizon is the faint band of the northern Milky Way.

APOD: 2008 July 3 - Hoodoo Sky
Explanation:

The strange-looking rock formations in the foreground of this skyscape are called hoodoos.

Towers of weathered, eroded sedimentary rock, hoodoos are found in arid regions of planet Earth and are particularly abundant in an area known as Bryce Canyon National Park in southern Utah, USA.

The more familiar night sky pictured here was recorded early Monday morning and includes bright star

Capella, alpha star of the constellation Auriga, left of center.

On the far right, a very over exposed crescent Moon dominates the sky in close conjunction with the sister stars of the Pleiades cluster.

The curious shapes of the two tall, illuminated hoodoos suggest their popular monikers; Thor's Hammer (right) and The Temple of Osiris.

APOD: 2007 December 25 - Mars and Orion Over Monument Valley
Explanation:

Welcome to The World At Night.

Sharing the night sky seen around the world, this view from Monument Valley, USA includes a picturesque foreground of famous buttes.

Buttes are composed of hard rock left behind after water eroded away the surrounding soft rock.

The two buttes on the image left are known as the

Mittens, while Merrick Butte is on the right.

Recorded just last week, planet Mars is at the left of the skyscape, a glowing beacon of orange that is the brightest object in the frame.

To the right of Mars lies the constellation of Orion.

Betelgeuse is the reddish star near the center and the Belt of Orion and the Orion Nebula are farther right.

Finally, the bright blue star

Rigel appears above Merrick Butte in this stunning view of The World At Night.

APOD: 2007 August 14 - A Spectacular Sky Over the Grand Tetons
Explanation: Behold the breathtaking beauty of Earth and sky together.

In the foreground is the Teton Mountain Range of Wyoming,

USA.

The Grand Tetons are a relatively isolated set of high peaks that are part of the Rocky Mountains.

On the far left, vast clouds of bright stars and dark dust are visible in the nearly vertical plane of our Milky Way Galaxy.

Our Galactic Plane appears to crash into the Tetons, but is actually far more distant.

On the left, just to the left of the southernmost Teton peak, the planet

Jupiter is visible.

Near the image center is the bright star Arcturus.

Scrolling to the far right will bring over the familiar asterism of the Big Dipper.

Last month it took five images, later digitally fused, to capture the majesty of this panoramic view.

APOD: 2007 August 7 - Old Faithful Below a Yellowstone Sky
Explanation:

You don't have to be at Yellowstone to see a sky this beautiful, but it helps.

Only at Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming, USA, would you see the picturesque foreground of the famous Old Faithful Geyser erupting in front an already picturesque sky.

Old Faithful Geyser, visible in the foreground, is seen propelling a stream of hot water

over 30 meters in the air. This happens predictably for a few minutes about every 90 minutes.

Also predictable are the brightest orbs that populate the nighttime sky, although those visible at any one time keep changing.

Visible far in the background sky of this mid-July image are the plane of our Milky Way Galaxy on the left, and the bright planet Jupiter on the right.

Jupiter is the brightest celestial object in the entire image.

Old Faithful has been erupting at least since the late 1800s.

APOD: 2006 August 1 - The Milky Way over Utah
Explanation:

If sometimes it appears that the entire Milky Way Galaxy is raining down on your head, do not despair.

It happens twice a day.

As the Sun rises in the East, wonders of the night sky become less bright than the sunlight scattered by our own Earth's atmosphere, and so fade from view.

They will only rotate

back into view when the Earth again eclipses our bright Sun at dusk.

This battle between heaven and Earth was captured dramatically over a rock formation at

Capitol Reef National Park Utah, USA in 2003 May.

Dark dust, millions of stars, and bright glowing red gas highlight the

plane of our Milky Way Galaxy, which lies on average thousands of light years behind Earth's mountains.

APOD: 2005 October 31 - A Martian Halloween
Explanation:

From sunset to sunrise, an unusually bright yellowish orb will hang in the sky this Halloween: Mars.

Yesterday, Earth passed Mars as they orbited the Sun, bringing Mars closer than it will be for the next thirteen years.

Tonight though, Mars will be nearly as bright as last night, a beacon of extraterrestrial spookiness.

Opposite the Sun, Mars will rise just when the Sun sets, set just when the Sun rises, and be visible the entire night.

Mars will not always be the brightest object in tonight's sky, though.

Brighter than even Mars, almost spooky Venus will light up the western horizon for a brief time just after sunset.

Please have a safe and happy

All Hallows Eve.

APOD: 2005 August 8 - Mars to Appear Normal this August
Explanation: Will Mars appear extremely close and bright later this month? No.

Regardless of numerous urban legends circulating, Mars will appear relatively normal in August.

October is the best month to see Mars this year.

The red planet

is now visible in the morning before sunrise.

As Earth catches up to Mars in their respective orbits around the Sun, Mars will keep rising earlier in the night.

On 2005 October 30, Earth will have caught up to Mars and the planets will be the nearest to each other in their orbits -- this time around.

On October 30, Mars will be nearly opposite to the Sun, rise at sunset, set at sunrise, and appear highest and brightest around midnight.

Also on October 30, Mars will appear brighter than it has in the past two years, although still over 10,000 times smaller and fainter than the full Moon.

Earth will then pass Mars, and Mars will appear to fade.

Pictured above, Mars is shown as it appeared 2003 August 27, when it appeared slightly brighter than it had in nearly 60,000 years.

The foreground setting is in the Valley of Fire state park in Nevada, USA.

The ellipticity of orbits primarily determines the closeness and brightness of Mars during opposition.

APOD: 2004 December 22 - Comet, Meteor, Nebula, Star
Explanation: Several wonders of the late-year northern sky appeared together for a few fleeting moments on December 13.

On the bottom left, just above the hill, is blue Sirius, the brightest star in the sky.

Above Sirius and slightly to the right of the belt of Orion is the red Orion Nebula, one of the most famous nebulas on the sky.

Below and to the right of the

Orion Nebula streaks a yellow meteor, although moving in the wrong direction to be from the Geminids meteor shower that peaked the night.

Finally, above and to the right of the meteor is Comet Machholz, whose coma appears here relatively green.

Since the time since this image was taken over a Californian hill, the Geminid meteor has long since evaporated.

Comet Machholz has brightened and moved to the north.

Sirius, however, will remain in the constellation of Canis Major indefinitely.

APOD: 2004 August 11 - A Perseid Meteor
Explanation: The ongoing Perseid Meteor Shower should be at its strongest tonight and tomorrow night.

Although meteors should be visible all night long, the best time to watch will be between 2:00 AM and dawn each night.

In dark, moonless, predawn

skies you may see dozens of meteors per hour.

Sky enthusiasts in Europe and Asia might see an unusual burst of meteors near 2100 hours UT.

Grains of cosmic sand and gravel shed from Comet Swift-Tuttle will streak across the sky as they vaporize during entry into Earth's atmosphere.

Tracing the meteor trails backwards,

experienced skygazers will find they converge on the constellation Perseus, thus this annual meteor shower's name.

Pictured above is a Perseid meteor from 2002 over a rock formation in the US Southwest desert.

Shadowing and blurring are caused by the long 10-minute exposure.

The brightest Perseids can be seen from anywhere on Earth by monitoring the continuously returning images from the Night Sky Live cameras.

APOD: 2004 May 18 - Comet NEAT (Q4) Over Indian Cove
Explanation:

Comet NEAT (Q4) was quite photogenic earlier this month.

Although the head and part of the tails of Comet C/2001 Q4 (NEAT) were visible to the unaided eye, the best views of the colorful tail were revealed only later by cameras able to expose for long periods.

A human eye can accumulate light for up to 1/10th of a second, as opposed to the above camera image, which used an exposure of thirty seconds on May 8.

Visible is a long blue

ion tail, a blue coma surrounding the comet's nucleus, and a shorter but brighter sunlight reflecting dust tail.

Q4 is dropping more from easy visibility each day as it recedes from both the Earth and the Sun.

Another separate naked-eye comet,

Comet LINEAR (T7), should remain bright into June.

APOD: 2004 May 3 - Comets Bradfield and LINEAR Rising
Explanation: Comet Bradfield is easy to see on the left, but can you find Comet LINEAR on the right?

Last week, just before sunrise from the northern hemisphere, two bright comets were visible in the same part of the sky at the same time.

The above long-exposure image was taken on the morning of April 25 from

Joshua Tree National Park in California, USA.

Comet C/2004 F4 (Bradfield) is giving an unexpectedly good show as it recedes from the Sun and Earth and fades from view.

Its tail is estimated by some to be about 10

degrees long.

Having just rounded the Sun itself, Comet C/2002 T7 (LINEAR) is now moving toward the Earth.

Although intrinsically fading, T7 will appear to brighten until about mid-May and so continue to be visible to the unaided eye before sunrise to southern hemisphere observers into June.

Q4, the third coincidental naked eye comet, will become visible in mid-May to northern hemisphere observers.

APOD: 2004 April 20 - Comet Hale Bopp Over Indian Cove
Explanation:

Comet Hale-Bopp, the Great Comet of 1997, was quite a sight.

No comets of comparable brightness have graced the skies of Earth since then.

During this next month, however, even besides the fleeting Comet Bradfield, two comets have a slight chance of rivaling Hale-Bopp and a good chance of putting on a

memorable sky show.

Unfortunately, most of the show will be confined to sky gazers in Earth's southern hemisphere.

Both comets are already visible to the unaided eye from there.

The first, Comet C/2002 T7 (LINEAR), should be at its best before dawn during the first weeks of May from the south.

The second, Comet C/2001 Q4 (NEAT), should be visible in early May from all over the Earth.

Both comets appear to be approaching the inner Solar System for the first time and so it is very

hard to predict how bright each will become.

In the above photograph taken 1997 April 6, Comet Hale-Bopp was imaged from the Indian Cove Campground in the Joshua Tree National Forest in California, USA.

A flashlight was used to momentarily illuminate foreground rocks during this six minute exposure.

APOD: 2004 March 8 - Moon and Venus over Corona Del Mar Beach
Explanation: The crescent Moon passed nearly in front of Venus two weeks ago.

The close conjunction of the night sky's two brightest objects created a striking pose for many viewing the evening sky just after sunset.

Such a pose, shown above, was captured between clouds over Corona Del Mar Beach in

California, USA.

To be precise, the Moon appeared to pass only about three degrees from Venus on February 23.

A similar conjunction will occur later this month, on March 24, when Venus appears near its furthest from the Sun while the

Moon passes only about 2 degrees away.

APOD: 2003 November 18 - Leonids Over Indian Cove
Explanation: One year ago today an impressive meteor shower graced the skies of Earth.

Pictured above from last year, at least six bright meteors are visible in only part of the sky above

Indian Cove campground in California, USA, during a four-minute exposure.

The 2002 Leonids packed a double punch with planet Earth plunging through two dense clouds of meteroids, dusty debris left by the passage of Comet Tempel-Tuttle.

This year, unfortunately, the main peak of the Leonids Meteor Shower is not

expected to be so impressive, with the Earth passing though parts of meteoroid clouds predicted to be much less dense.

The main peak of the 2003 Leonids is predicted for tomorrow where some locations might see a bright meteor every minute.

APOD: 2003 August 28 - Mars Rising Behind Elephant Rock
Explanation: Yesterday, at about 10 am

Universal Time, Mars and Earth passed closer than in nearly 60,000 years.

Mars, noticeably red, remains the brightest object in the eastern sky just after sunset.

The best views of Mars, however, will continue to be from the robot spacecraft currently orbiting Mars: the Mars Global Surveyor and the

Mars Odyssey.

The current pass sparked the launching of four new spacecraft toward Mars, some of which will deploy landers early next year and likely return even more spectacular views of our planetary neighbor.

Pictured above, Mars was photographed rising in the southeast behind Elephant Rock in the Valley of Fire State Park,

Nevada, USA.

APOD: 2003 August 13 - Mars Rising Behind Poodle Rock
Explanation: Have you seen Mars lately?

As Earth and Mars near their

closest approach in nearly 60,000 years on August 27, the red planet has begun to appear dramatically bright and show interesting details through telescopes and binoculars.

Although not yet visible at sunset, Mars can be seen rising increasingly earlier in the evening.

Once above the horizon, Mars is easy to spot, as it sports a distinct orange-red hue and it is the brightest object in the sky after the

Sun, the nearby Moon, and Venus.

After Earth overtakes Mars in their respective solar orbits, Mars will be visible right from sunset, although its historic brightness will then begin to fade.

Pictured above, Mars was captured rising in the south east next to Poodle Rock in Valley of Fire State Park,

Nevada, USA.

APOD: 2003 July 15 - Mars Rising Through Arch Rock
Explanation: Mars is heading for its closest encounter with Earth in over 50,000 years.

Although Mars and

Earth continue in their normal orbits around the Sun, about every two years Earth and Mars are on the same part of their orbit as seen from the Sun.

When this happens again in late August, Mars will be almost as near to the Sun as it ever gets, while simultaneously Earth will be almost as far from the Sun as it ever gets.

This means that now is a great time to launch your space probe to Mars.

Alternatively, these next few months are a great time to see a bright red Mars from your backyard.

Mars is so close that global features should be visible even through a small telescope.

Look for Mars to rise about 11 pm and to remain the brightest red object in the sky until sunrise.

Mars will rise increasingly earlier until its closest approach in late August.

Mars was captured above rising through the Arch Rock in Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada, USA.

APOD: 2002 November 5 - Leonids Over Joshua Tree National Park
Explanation: This year's

Leonid Meteor Shower is predicted to have two peaks, like last year's.

The first peak should come at about 04:00 hours Universal Time (UT) on November 19 and be primarily visible from Western Europe before sunrise.

The second peak is predicted to occur at about 10:30 UT and be primarily visible from North America before local sunrise.

During these times, the Leonid Meteor Shower might well develop into a true meteor storm, with rates possibly exceeding those measured during

last year's storm.

The meteors in these two peaks come from sand-sized particles ejected from Comet Tempel-Tuttle during trips to the inner Solar System in 1767 and 1866, respectively.

If you're stuck without a view you can still catch the shower by looking for streaks caught by

the web cameras of the Night Sky Live Project.

Pictured above are several meteors from the 2001 Leonids streaking over

Joshua Tree National Park in California, USA.

APOD: 2001 November 16 - Leonid Watching
Explanation:

Will the Leonids storm this year?

The annual Leonid meteor shower should peak

this weekend and some predictions suggest that "storm" rates of a thousand or more meteors per hour are possible for observers located in eastern North and Central America during the early morning hours of Sunday, November 18.

Similar high rates are also anticipated for the western Pacific region on the morning of November 19th.

In any event, the 2001 Leonid shower should be dramatic and easy to watch, as were the Leonids of recent years.

From top left to bottom right above are spectacular examples of bright fireball meteors from the 1998 Leonid shower as recorded by V. Winter and J. Dudley, Lorenzo Lovato, and

Wally Pacholka.

A 1998 image from the Puckett Observatory at lower left features the source of the debris stream which supplies the Leonid meteors, comet Tempel-Tuttle.

APOD: 2000 November 17 - Leonid Sunrise
Explanation:

Such beautiful things begin as grains of sand.

Locked in an oyster a granule grows into an iridescent pearl, lustrous and lovely to behold.

While hurtling through the atmosphere at 70 kilometers per second, a cosmic sand grain becomes an

awe-inspiring meteor, its transient beauty displayed for any who care to watch.

Framed perfectly between orange clouds at sunrise, this bright meteor trail was photographed from the Joshua Tree National Park in California, USA during the 1998 Leonid Meteor Shower.

Appropriately titled "Leonid Sunrise", the picture was recorded on high-speed film (ASA 3200) with a 35mm camera.

Its striking colors and grainy, textured appearance suggest a painting on canvas.

Of course, you could see Leonid meteors at sunrise for yourself.

With clear skies, your next chance is coming up ...

tomorrow morning.

APOD: November 18, 1999 - A Sirius Leonid Meteor
Explanation:

In the sky or on the web, did you watch this year's Leonid meteor shower?

If you did, meteors flashing through the night sky should be a familiar sight.

Recorded last year during the

1998 apparition of the Leonids, this time-exposure of the sky around the constellation Canis Major (big dog) shows the trail of a spectacular fireball meteor.

The meteor, by chance, seems to leap from the constellation's brightest star Sirius, near the top right.

In the foreground is the beautiful desert scenery of Joshua Tree National Park.

At this year's peak of the cosmic dust storm, observers in Europe and Africa reported intense rates of over 1600 meteors per hour for a brief period near 0215 November 18 (UTC).

Awe inspiring as they were,

the Leonids posed no danger to earthbound skywatchers.

APOD: October 6, 1999 - Polaris: The North Star
Explanation: Polaris is quite an unusual star. First, Polaris is the nearest bright star to the north spin axis of the Earth.

Therefore, as the Earth turns, stars appear to

rotate around Polaris, making it the North Star.

Since no bright star is near the south spin axis of the Earth, there is currently no South Star.

Thousands of years ago, Earth's spin axis pointed in a slightly different direction, and Vega was the North Star.

Although Polaris is not the brightest star on the sky, it is easily located because it is nearly aligned with two stars in the cup of the Big Dipper, and is the last star in the handle of the

Little Dipper.

In the above picture, Polaris is the brightest star on the right, above the fleeting streak of a Perseid meteor.

The surface of Polaris slowly pulsates, causing the star to change its brightness by a few percent over the course of a few days.

This rare Cepheid variability of Polaris is, oddly enough, itself changing.

APOD: May 18, 1999 - A Laguna Triangle


Explanation: High above Laguna Beach last month hung bright celestial orbs.

Visible after the California sunset were, from left to right, the Moon, Saturn, and Venus.

Tonight and for the next few days,

Venus and the Moon will again be visible together. Nearby stars will include Pollux, Castor, and Procyon.

Venus now sets hours after the Sun and is so bright it might be mistaken for an airplane or

UFO. Binoculars should enable the viewing of craters on the Moon, and phases for Venus.

APOD: November 16, 1998 - Leonids 1998: A Safe Meteor Storm
Explanation:

You're in no danger. During the meteor storm occurring tonight and tomorrow, thousands of bits of ice and rock will likely rain onto the Earth. Few, if any, will hit the ground.

Touted as potentially the most active meteor shower since 1966, the

Leonids of 1998 will be tracked by

observers the world over.

The meteor storm is caused by the Earth moving through the leftover debris of Comet Temple-Tuttle.

The peak of the storm will be best visible tomorrow from Asia, though increased activity should be visible globally over many hours.

It is even possible to monitor the storm live on the web. Pictured above is a

Perseid 1997 meteor streaking across the sky behind an illuminated California desert.

APOD: December 15, 1997 - A Farewell to Tails
Explanation: As 1997 fades, so does the Great Comet of 1997: Comet Hale-Bopp. Discovered even before the Great Comet of 1996, Comet Hale-Bopp became the brightest comet since

1976.

Many will remember Comet Hale-Bopp as a comet with a coma so bright it could be seen by eye even when near the Moon. Others will remember spectacular photographs that appeared in magazines and on the web.

Amateurs, inspired by the beauty of the comet, took most of these photographs. In particular, today APOD salutes Wally Pacholka, who took the above famous photograph.

Mr. Pacholka reports that he repeatedly drove 150 miles to a national park, stayed up half the night, and took hundreds of photos while carefully waving a flashlight to momentarily illuminate the foreground. His equipment consisted only of a standard 35-mm camera which, for pointing accuracy, he piggybacked on a telescope bought at age 12 with money earned from a paper route.

APOD: August 20, 1997 - Bright Meteor, Dark Sky
Explanation: Has Orion the Hunter acquired a new weapon? If you turn your head sideways (counterclockwise) you might notice the familiar constellation of Orion, particularly the three consecutive bright stars that make up Orion's belt. But in addition to the stars that compose his

sword, Orion appears to have added some sort of futuristic light-saber, possibly in an attempt to finally track down Taurus the Bull. Actually, the bright streak is a meteor from the Perseid Meteor Shower, a shower that put on an impressive display last Tuesday morning, when this photograph was taken. This meteor was likely a small icy pebble shed years ago from Comet Swift-Tuttle that evaporated as it entered Earth's atmosphere.

APOD: August 6, 1997 - Hale-Bopp from Indian Cove
Explanation: Good cameras were able to obtain impressive photographs of Comet Hale-Bopp when at its brightest earlier this year. In the above photograph taken April 5th, Comet Hale-Bopp was imaged from the Indian Cove Campground in the

Joshua Tree National Forest in California, USA. A flashlight was used to momentarily illuminate foreground rocks in this 30 second exposure. Comet Hale-Bopp is still visible to the unaided eye in Earth's Southern Hemisphere, with observers there reporting it to be about 4th magnitude. The comet is now passing nearly in front of the star Sirius, and shows only a slight dust tail.