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Credit & Copyright: Michael Cole
Explanation:
A telescopic tour of the
constellation Sagittarius offers the many
bright clusters and nebulae of
dimensioned space in a
starscape
surrounding the
galactic center.
This gorgeous
color
deep-sky photograph visits two such lovely sights,
cataloged by the 18th century cosmic tourist
Charles
Messier as M8 and M20.
M20 (upper left),
the Trifid Nebula, offers a striking contrast
in
red/blue colors and dark dust lanes.
Just below and to the right is the
expansive, alluring red glow of M8,
the Lagoon Nebula.
Both nebulae are a few thousand light-years distant
but at the far right, the dominant celestial beacon is a "local"
source,
the
planet Mars.
Just passing through Sagittarius and
strongly overexposed in this picture,
the Red Planet
is a short 4 light-minutes away.
Now
near its closest approach to planet Earth since 1988,
Mars rises around sunset and
can be seen
for most of the night
shining
brightly at about -2.3
magnitude.
Urban imager
Michael Cole recorded this photograph at 3:00 AM on May 20th
in clear skies over Camp Hancock, Oregon, USA.
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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: Mars - M 8 - M 20 - Galactic Center
Publications with words: Mars - M 8 - M 20 - Galactic Center
See also: