May 4, 2011
Consider this: the iron in your blood was forged in a supernova explosion billions of years ago.
Celestial Trails over Greece
Birthday · May 4, 2011
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APOD published May 4, 2011 · Video still. Credit: Chris Kotsiopoulos. A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.
If you watch the horizon at just the right place and at just the right time, you can witness some spectacular juxtapositions between Earth and sky. In the above video, stars, the Moon, and even a partially eclipsed Sun were recorded rising and setting over photogenic landmarks in Greece. The inspiring video features effects on star trails that are pretty but somewhat deceiving, as stars will typically remain at nearly the same brightness as the Earth turns beneath them. Also, the time lapse nature of part of the video causes clouds to appear to jump about and fade in an unfamiliar fashion. Several stills of these scenes have appeared on APOD previously, including the partial solar eclipse over the Temple of Poseidon, cloud and star trails over a deserted church, and star trails over an old ship. Other foreground venues include an old church in Peloponnese, a stone bridge in Ioannina, a Frankish Castle in Euboea, and a picturesque sunset above Lycabettus Hill, Athens.
Image credit: Chris Kotsiopoulos