APOD: 2026 May 12 Б The Conjunction of Comet R3 PanSTARRS and the Orion Nebula
Explanation:
TodayБs
composite image
features
something old,
something new, something borrowed, and something blue!
Comet R3 PanSTARRS,
streaking across the right of the image, likely originated from
the Oort Cloud,
meaning it is an old Solar System relic from billions of years ago. ItБs
bright extended
ion tail
glows blue as the gas escaping the cometБs core is ionized by sunlight.
Astronomers are fascinated by
comets
for all sorts of reasons: comet compositions are untouched time capsules containing
the building blocks of Solar System planets; comets may have
delivered
water
to the young Earth; the behavior of cometary tails shed light on solar wind and radiation
interactions. The background mosaic, featuring
the Orion Nebula
(M42),
was taken over two nights of observation with the comet captured on the third night.
The Orion Nebula
is our nearest stellar nursery and, at
about 2 million years old,
is our something (relatively) new! Now at around
127.5 million kilometers from Earth,
we wave goodbye to the borrowed Comet R3 PanSTARRS as it leaves the Solar
System.
| << Yesterday | 12.05.2026 |
Growing Gallery:
Comet R3 in 2026
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 |
Январь Февраль Март Апрель Май Июнь Июль Август Сентябрь Октябрь Ноябрь Декабрь |
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
|
Публикации с ключевыми словами:
comet - кометы
Публикации со словами: comet - кометы | |
См. также:
Все публикации на ту же тему >> | |