火箭凌越涟波纹身的太阳

2022年5月31日

Rocket Transits Rippling Sun
Image Credit & Copyright: Michael Cain

Explanation: The launch of a rocket at sunrise can result in unusual but intriguing images that feature both the rocket and the Sun. Such was the case last month when a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket blasted off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center carrying 53 more Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit. In the featured launch picture, the rocket’s exhaust plume glows beyond its projection onto the distant Sun, the rocket itself appears oddly jagged, and the Sun’s lower edge shows peculiar drip-like ripples. The physical cause of all of these effects is pockets of relatively hot or rarefied air deflecting sunlight less strongly than pockets relatively cool or compressed air: refraction. Unaware of the Earthly show, active sunspot region 3014 — on the upper left — slowly crosses the Sun.

Tomorrow’s picture: unexpected meteors

火箭凌越涟波纹身的太阳
影像提供与版权: Michael Cain

说明: 在日出时发射火箭，可能会产生太阳与火箭同时入镜的不寻常影像。例证之一就出现在上个月，当时SpaceX猎鹰9号火箭从美国宇航局肯尼迪航天中心发射升空，为低地球轨道再送去53颗星链卫星。在这幅记录火箭发射的主题影像里，火箭的明亮的排气羽流波及远后方的太阳，除了让火箭本身出现奇怪的弯折之外，太阳的下缘更烙着奇特的水滴状涟漪。造成所有这些效应的物理原因，则是相对热或稀薄的空气对阳光的弯折能力（折射）低于相对冷或致密的空气。而完全没意识到此地球事件的的太阳活跃区3014，依然在日盘的左上角缓缓旋绕过日盘。

明日的图片: unexpected meteors