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Credit & Copyright: Wang Chao
Explanation:
Yes, but can your comet tail do this?
No, and what you are seeing is not the
tail of a
comet.
The picture features a
cleverly overlayed time-lapse
sequence of a
group of satellites orbiting
Earth together in June.
Specifically, these are
Starlink communications satellites in
low Earth orbit reflecting back sunlight before sunrise to
Inner Mongolia,
China.
Although the satellites appear to the
human eye as points,
the 20-second-long camera exposures caused them to appear as short
streaks.
Currently there are over 9000
Starlinks in orbit,
with more being
launched nearly every week.
Other
satellite constellations are also being planned.
Explore the Universe:
Random APOD Generator
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: comet - sunset
Publications with words: comet - sunset
See also:
- 3I/ATLAS Flyby
- APOD: 2025 December 22 Á Sunset Solstice over Stonehenge
- SWAN, Swan, Eagle
- APOD: 2025 October 15 Á Rocket Launch Plume over Tucson
- APOD: 2025 October 6 Á The Changing Ion Tail of Comet Lemmon
- APOD: 2025 December 1 Á 3I ATLAS: Tails of an Interstellar Comet
- APOD: 2025 November 25 Á Comet Lemmon and the Milky Way