瓦伦第纳的夜晚

2024年8月15日

Late Night Vallentuna
Image Credit & Copyright: P-M Hedén (Clear Skies, TWAN)

Explanation: Bright Mars and even brighter Jupiter are in close conjunction just above the pine trees in this post-midnight skyscape from Vallentuna, Sweden. Taken on August 12 during a geomagnetic storm, the snapshot records the glow of aurora borealis or northern lights, beaming from the left side of the frame. Of course on that date Perseid meteors rained through planet Earth’s skies, grains of dust from the shower’s parent, periodic comet Swift-Tuttle. The meteor streak at the upper right is a Perseid plowing through the atmosphere at about 60 kilometers per second. Also well-known in in Earth’s night sky, the bright Pleides star cluster shines below the Perseid meteor streak. In Greek myth, the Pleiades were seven daughters of the astronomical titan Atlas and sea-nymph Pleione. The Pleiades and their parents’ names are given to the cluster’s nine brightest stars.

Gallery: Perseid Meteor Shower 2024 and Aurorae

Tomorrow’s picture: meteor borealis

瓦伦第纳的夜晚
影像提供与版权: P-M Hedén (Clear Skies, TWAN)

说明: 在这张摄于瑞典瓦伦第纳市子夜后的天空照片里，松树上方有发生近合的火星及更明亮的木星。而北极光，则在这张摄于8月12日磁暴期间的照片之左侧散发辉光。想当然耳，这个夜晚更有来自英仙座流星雨母源（彗星斯威夫特-塔特尔）的尘埃微粒洒落。例如影像右上角的光痕，就是以约60公里秒速穿过地球大气的英仙流星之流星迹。此外，地球夜空中著名的昴宿星团也在这道流星迹的下方绽放光芒。于希腊神话里，“昴宿星团（Pleiades）”是巨人阿特拉斯和海妖普勒俄涅的7个女儿。也因此，昴宿星团内最明亮的9颗恒星，就分别以这7位女儿及其父母为名。

画廊: 2024年英仙座流星雨和极光

明日的图片: meteor borealis