Random Astronomy Pictures OTD

Posting 4 times daily

Posting archive pictures from NASA's Astronomy Picture of the Day as seen at
https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html

(Unofficial bot)

See also @apod for a new picture each day.

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2025-11-04 01:18:32 UTC

APOD from 2020-02-16
NGC 2392: Double-Shelled Planetary #Nebula
Discovered by W. Herschel in 1787, NGC 2392 is a complex planetary nebula imaged by Hubble. It has double shells and intricate gas clouds, with the outer layer formed 10,000 years ago. Spanning 1/3 light-year, it's 3,000 light-years away in Gemini.
HD image at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap200216.html
https://files.mastodon.bot/media_attachments/files/115/484/507/335/650/844/original/f58582ef8d70eae1.jpg

2025-11-03 19:18:30 UTC

APOD from 2021-12-10
#Eclipse on a Polar Day
This fisheye timelapse captures the Sun's circular path during an Antarctic summer day. Taken on Dec 4 at Union Glacier, it includes a rare view of a total solar eclipse, with the darkened sky and eclipsed Sun at the center.
HD image at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap211210.html
https://files.mastodon.bot/media_attachments/files/115/484/506/917/955/659/original/52fb5eabb736cd54.jpg

2025-11-03 13:18:36 UTC

APOD from 2009-02-26
#Moon, #Mercury, #Jupiter, #Mars
2009 February 26
HD image at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap090226.html
https://files.mastodon.bot/media_attachments/files/115/484/506/438/888/236/original/1a5bc4e2b8aae09f.jpg

2025-11-03 01:17:19 UTC

APOD from 2020-11-03
Tagging Bennu: The Movie
NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft thumped asteroid Bennu to collect samples. The video shows the TAG event, with the probe approaching Bennu, touching down in Nightingale area, and stirring up debris. Samples will return to Earth by 2023 for analysis of organic compounds and solar system history.
Video at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap201103.html

2025-11-02 19:17:14 UTC

APOD from 2012-08-29
A Dark #Earth with a Red Sprite
An ISS photo captures a rare red sprite—a type of upper atmospheric lightning—next to typical white lightning. First photographed in 1989, sprites' origins and effects remain largely mysterious.
HD image at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap120829.html
https://files.mastodon.bot/media_attachments/files/115/478/839/332/092/087/original/9b8ae6afd095f5df.jpg

2025-11-02 13:17:12 UTC

APOD from 2018-11-03
#Lunar LOVE
Amateur astronomers in Japan found "L-O-V-E" on the Moon's surface by examining light and shadows along the terminator. The transient lunar letters, like the famous lunar X, appear only around the first quarter phase, with the next chance to see them on November 15.
HD image at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap181103.html
https://files.mastodon.bot/media_attachments/files/115/478/838/997/567/664/original/2e8b912aaf6f2874.jpg

2025-11-02 07:17:16 UTC

APOD from 2013-09-15
M2-9: Wings of a Butterfly #Nebula
As stars like our Sun die, they shed their outer layers, forming planetary nebulae. M2-9, 2100 light-years away, displays this with its butterfly wings shaped by a binary system at its heart. The exact mechanisms behind such nebulae remain mysterious.
HD image at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap130915.html
https://files.mastodon.bot/media_attachments/files/115/478/838/654/902/947/original/a0c07cc01328d953.jpg

2025-11-01 19:16:52 UTC

APOD from 2013-04-15
IC 1848: The Soul #Nebula
The Soul Nebula, in Cassiopeia, is a star-forming region 6,500 light-years away, spanning 100 light-years. It contains star clusters, the W5 radio source, and stellar wind-created bubbles. Its red hue comes from excited hydrogen gas emissions.
HD image at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap130415.html
https://files.mastodon.bot/media_attachments/files/115/473/179/186/678/389/original/53ae54bf615f52c6.jpg

2025-11-01 01:17:48 UTC

APOD from 2014-05-21
A Supercell Storm Cloud Forming over Wyoming
Time-lapse video captures a supercell storm's formation in Wyoming, featuring a mesocyclone—a rotating updraft caused by wind changes. This phenomenon can lead to severe weather like hail and tornadoes. Observers are seen monitoring and fleeing the formidable, swirling cloud.
Video at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap140521.html

2025-10-31 19:17:48 UTC

APOD from 2012-11-06
Methone: Smooth Egg #Moon of #Saturn
Cassini's flyby revealed Saturn's moon Methone as an anomaly with its smooth, craterless surface, possibly due to a shifting layer of fine rubble. At 3 km wide, its egg-like shape and dark patches intrigue scientists, hinting at unique surface properties.
HD image at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap121106.html
https://files.mastodon.bot/media_attachments/files/115/467/517/271/013/674/original/6dbe72e5ff512cb8.jpg

2025-10-31 13:17:49 UTC

APOD from 2011-06-23
Stereo Helene
Don your 3D glasses to view Helene, Saturn's icy Trojan moon, orbiting at Dione's leading Lagrange point. This stereo image from Cassini reveals its cratered surface.
HD image at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap110623.html
https://files.mastodon.bot/media_attachments/files/115/467/516/925/679/000/original/8d1e7aa7e864a32c.jpg

2025-10-31 07:17:49 UTC

APOD from 2009-11-26
M78 Wide Field
M78, a bright reflection nebula in Orion, is featured in this image. About 1,500 light-years away and 5 light-years wide, its blue hue comes from dust reflecting starlight. Nearby are NGC 2071 and the variable McNeil's Nebula, with a faint red glow of hydrogen gas visible in the background.
HD image at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap091126.html
https://files.mastodon.bot/media_attachments/files/115/467/516/585/203/407/original/cfdb6f4609f07169.jpg

2025-10-31 01:17:57 UTC

APOD from 2014-02-21
The Long Jet of the Lighthouse #Nebula
The Lighthouse nebula, formed by a pulsar's wind speeding through space at 1,000 km/s, lies 23,000 light-years away in Carina. Captured by Chandra X-ray Observatory, it features a comet-like tail and the longest particle jet in the Milky Way, remnants of a supernova explosion.
HD image at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap140221.html
https://files.mastodon.bot/media_attachments/files/115/461/855/739/800/757/original/423293c254e431a4.jpg

2025-10-30 19:18:00 UTC

APOD from 2009-11-28
Annapurna Star Trails
Moonlit Himalayan peaks of Annapurna Range mimic Atlas, holding up starry skies in a time-lapse photo from Ghandruk, Nepal. Earth's rotation creates concentric star trails around the North Celestial Pole, with Polaris leaving a bright arc near the center.
HD image at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap091128.html
https://files.mastodon.bot/media_attachments/files/115/461/855/275/785/149/original/548e299fce6f36e6.jpg

2025-10-30 13:17:54 UTC

APOD from 2006-02-27
GRB 060218: A Mysterious Transient
A mysterious transient in Aries, GRB 060218, detected by Swift satellite, emits across the spectrum. Its unusual brightness changes puzzle astronomers. Images before and after show it clearly. At z=0.033, it's a close GRB—possibly a new type or supernova link—sparking research interest.
HD image at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap060227.html
https://files.mastodon.bot/media_attachments/files/115/461/854/911/165/163/original/6db96daeea38c2a4.jpg

2025-10-30 01:18:13 UTC

APOD from 2005-12-06
The Veil #Nebula Unveiled
The Veil Nebula, remnants of a supernova in the Milky Way, is 1,400 light-years away and spans five full Moons. Once as bright as a crescent Moon, it's now visible with telescopes. The image was enhanced by dimming stars; its top feature is the Witch's Broom Nebula.
HD image at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap051206.html
https://files.mastodon.bot/media_attachments/files/115/456/194/147/395/440/original/8f6f07dff0a28f88.jpg

2025-10-29 19:18:21 UTC

APOD from 2018-01-21
The Upper Michigan Blizzard of 1938
1938's Storm of the Century in Upper Michigan saw snow drifts reach utility pole heights. Gale-force winds created impassable roads, stranding people and vehicles. Two fatalities occurred, with some students stuck at school for days. The event illustrates how repeated storms contribute to glacier formation on Earth.
HD image at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap180121.html
https://files.mastodon.bot/media_attachments/files/115/456/193/811/907/306/original/f09dac6a754abeb5.jpg

2025-02-12 13:30:02 UTC

APOD from 2014-02-05
NGC 2683: Edge-On Spiral #Galaxy
Is spiral galaxy NGC 2683 barred like the Milky Way? It's hard to confirm due to its edge-on view. Located 20 million light-years away in Lynx, this island universe shines with old stars and features dust-laden spiral arms with young star clusters, as seen in combined Subaru and Hubble images.
HD image at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap140205.html
https://files.mastodon.bot/media_attachments/files/113/989/701/829/286/273/original/29030a2423b19bc1.jpg

2025-02-12 07:30:06 UTC

APOD from 2024-09-16
#Mercury's Vivaldi Crater from BepiColombo
Mysterious Vivaldi Crater on Mercury, with two rings and a smooth floor, puzzles scientists. Captured by BepiColombo, it may result from an impact and subsequent lava flow. The cause of double-ringed craters like this remains under study as BepiColombo prepares for a 2026 Mercury orbit.
HD image at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap240916.html
https://files.mastodon.bot/media_attachments/files/113/989/701/466/465/238/original/5c458fbe61fde4a7.jpg

2024-11-25 13:34:42 UTC

APOD from 2011-04-11
Otherworldly #Planet Rise
Sunrises on distant planets may show a bright point instead of a round orb. The image above mimics Venus-rise from Earth, taken through Mesa Arch, Utah. The scene, with its orange sky and buttes, evokes Martian dawns just before the sun appears as a round orb.
HD image at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap110411.html
https://files.mastodon.bot/media_attachments/files/113/542/397/600/993/183/original/5f240d752c7e8152.jpg