The Geminid
Explanation:
Returning from
beyond the Moon, on
December
11
the Orion spacecraft entered Earth's atmosphere
at almost 11 kilometers per second.
That's half the speed of the grain of dust that created this long
fireball meteor when it entered the atmosphere on December 13,
near the peak of the annual
Geminid
meteor shower.
As our fair planet makes its yearly pass through the dust trail of mysterious
asteroid
3200 Phaethon,
the parallel tracks of all Geminid meteors appear
to radiate from a point in the constellation Gemini.
But the
twin stars
of Gemini hide just behind the trees on the
left in this night skyscape
from the beautiful Blue Moon Valley, Yunnan, China.
Reflected in the still waters of the mountain lake, stars of
the constellation Orion are rising near center.
Captured before moonrise,
dazzling Mars
is still the brightest celestial beacon in the scene.
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.
