April 13, 2017
The Earth has carried you around the Sun again, steady as ever, while the stars kept their patient watch.
Moons and Jupiter
Birthday · April 13, 2017
A little universe, just for you
Your date.
Ready to give.
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APOD published April 13, 2017. Credit: Göran Strand. A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.
On April 10, a Full Moon and Jupiter shared this telephoto field of view. Both were near opposition, opposite the Sun in Earth's night sky. Captured when a passing cloud bank dimmmed the bright moonlight, the single exposure reveals the familiar face of our fair planet's own large natural satellite, along with a line up of the ruling gas giant's four Galilean moons. Labeled top to bottom, the tiny pinpricks of light above bright Jupiter are Callisto, Europa, Ganymede, and Io. Closer and brighter, our own natural satellite appears to loom large. But Callisto, Ganymede, and Io are physically larger than Earth's Moon, while water world Europa is only slightly smaller. In fact, of the Solar System's six largest planetary satellites, only Saturn's moon Titan is missing from the scene.
Image credit: Göran Strand