May 23, 2003
Your birthday marks the moment a small planet circling a modest star gained another witness to its wonders.
Eclipsed Moon and Stars
Birthday · May 23, 2003
A little universe, just for you
Your date.
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APOD published May 23, 2003. Credit: Jay Ouellet. A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.
Half-shadowed by the Earth, the Moon takes on a remarkable appearance against a field of stars in this intriguing telephoto picture recorded during a partial phase of last week's lunar eclipse. The picture is not a composite, but it has been digitally enhanced to bring out features covering a large range in brightness. On the Moon itself, surface details are visible in both the bright uneclipsed portion in direct sunlight, and the very much dimmer copper-colored, eclipsed region. Also much fainter than the Moon's sunlit surface, the background star field, along with the unusual lighting, seems to contribute to an eerie "3D" perception of the lunar orb. Canadian astrophotographer Jay Ouellet took the picture from l'Observatoire de la Decouverte in Val Belair, a suburb of Quebec City, where about 200 skygazers gathered to enjoy the celestial exposition.
Image credit: Jay Ouellet