ALMA Milky Way
Explanation:
This alluring all-skyscape was taken 5,100 meters above sea level,
from the
Chajnantor Plateau
in the Chilean Andes.
Viewed through the site's rarefied atmosphere at about 50% sea level
pressure, the gorgeous Milky Way stretches through the scene.
Its
cosmic rifts
of dust, stars, and nebulae are
joined by Venus, a brilliant morning star immersed
in a strong band of predawn
Zodiacal light.
Still not
completely dark
even at this high altitude,
the night sky's greenish cast is due to
airglow
emission from oxygen atoms.
Around the horizon the dish antenna units of
the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array,
ALMA, explore the universe
at wavelengths over 1,000 times longer than visible light.
Participate: Take an
Aesthetics &
Astronomy Survey
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
