September 17, 2010
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.
Northern Lights over Prelude Lake
Birthday · September 17, 2010
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APOD published September 17, 2010. Credit: Yuichi Takasaka. A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.
Curtains of shimmering green light sprawl across this gorgeous night skyscape. In the foreground lies the peaceful Prelude Lake, located about 30 kilometers east of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada. From high northern latitudes these mesmerizing northern lights, also known as the aurora borealis, are becoming a more familiar sight. As the September 23rd equinox approaches, nights grow longer and a favorable season for aurora begins. Recorded on September 11, this panoramic scene spans about 180 degrees. Brighter stars peering through the auroral glow at the left form the recognizable northern asterism, the Big Dipper. A more compact Pleiades star cluster shines at the far right. Take a short survey about viewing astronomy images on mobile devices.
Image credit: Yuichi Takasaka