June 26, 2024
In the time it took you to read this, the Earth moved another thousand miles through space. You are not standing still. You never have been.
Timelapse: Aurora, SAR, and the Milky Way
Birthday · June 26, 2024
A little universe, just for you
Your date.
Ready to give.
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APOD published June 26, 2024 · Video still. Credit: Jeff Dai (TWAN); Music: Ibaotu catalog number 771024 (Used with permission). A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.
What's happening in the sky this unusual night? Most striking in the featured 4.5-hour 360-degree panoramic video, perhaps, is the pink and purple aurora. That's because this night, encompassing May 11, was famous for its auroral skies around the world. As the night progresses, auroral bands shimmer, the central band of our Milky Way Galaxy rises, and stars shift as the Earth rotates beneath them. Captured here simultaneously is a rare red band running above the aurora: a SAR arc, seen to change only slightly. The flashing below the horizon is caused by passing cars, while the moving spots in the sky are satellites and airplanes. The featured video was captured from Xinjiang, China with four separate cameras.
Image credit: Jeff Dai (TWAN); Music: Ibaotu catalog number 771024 (Used with permission)