Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
written by a professional astronomer.

2025 May 4
An artistic illustration of a black hole is shown. The black spot in
the center is the black hole, while the accretion disk of gas
surrounding it is shown in orange. Stars and the darkness of space is
shown near the top in the background. Please see the explanation for
more detailed information.

Spin up of a Supermassive Black Hole
Illustration Credit: Robert Hurt, NASA/JPL-Caltech

Explanation: How fast can a black hole spin? If any object made of
regular matter spins too fast -- it breaks apart. But a black hole
might not be able to break apart -- and its maximum spin rate is really
unknown. Theorists usually model rapidly rotating black holes with the
Kerr solution to Einstein's General Theory of Relativity, which
predicts several amazing and unusual things. Perhaps its most easily
testable prediction, though, is that matter entering a maximally
rotating black hole should be last seen orbiting at near the speed of
light, as seen from far away. This prediction was tested by NASA's
NuSTAR and ESA's XMM satellites by observing the supermassive black
hole at the center of spiral galaxy NGC 1365. The near light-speed
limit was confirmed by measuring the heating and spectral line
broadening of nuclear emissions at the inner edge of the surrounding
accretion disk. Pictured here is an artist's illustration depicting an
accretion disk of normal matter swirling around a black hole, with a
jet emanating from the top. Since matter randomly falling into the
black hole should not spin up a black hole this much, the NuSTAR and
XMM measurements also validate the existence of the surrounding
accretion disk.

Hole New Worlds: It's Black Hole Week at NASA!
Tomorrow's picture: planet lines
__________________________________________________________________

Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
NASA Web Privacy, Accessibility, Notices;
A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
NASA Science Activation
& Michigan Tech. U.

--- BBBS/Li6 v4.10 Toy-7
* Origin: The Rusty MailBox - Penticton, BC Canada (1:153/757)

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
written by a professional astronomer.

2025 May 5
The featured image shows a night sky over some choppy water. The planet
Venus shines high in the night sky, while a faint Saturn in on the far
right. The crescent Moon is visible near the image center. A bright
boat beacon is also visible on the right. All of these objects are
reflected as lines in the foreground water. Please see the explanation
for more detailed information.

Planet Lines Across Water
Image Credit & Copyright: Jose Antonio Hervas

Explanation: WhatCÇÖs causing those lines? Objects in the sky sometimes
appear reflected as lines across water CÇö but why? If the waterCÇÖs
surface is smooth, then reflected objects would appear similarly -- as
spots. But if the water is choppy, then there are many places where
light from the object can reflect off the water and still come to you
-- and so together form, typically, a line. The same effect is
frequently seen for the Sun just before sunset and just after sunrise.
Pictured about 10 days ago in Ibiza, Spain, images of the setting Moon,
Venus (top), and Saturn (right, faint) were captured both directly and
in line-reflected forms from the Mediterranean Sea. The other bright
object on the right with a water-reflected line is a beacon on a rock
to warn passing boats.

Explore Your Universe: Random APOD Generator
Tomorrow's picture: open space
__________________________________________________________________

Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
NASA Web Privacy, Accessibility, Notices;
A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
NASA Science Activation
& Michigan Tech. U.

--- BBBS/Li6 v4.10 Toy-7
* Origin: The Rusty MailBox - Penticton, BC Canada (1:153/757)

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
written by a professional astronomer.

2025 May 7
Two large galaxies are shown against a dark starfield. The galaxy on
the upper left has blue spiral arms speckled with red nebulae. The
galaxy on the lower right has a white line with red filaments on each
side. Thin wisps cover some of the rest of the field. Please see the
explanation for more detailed information.

Galaxy Wars: M81 versus M82
Image Credit & Copyright: Collaborative Astrophotography Team (CAT)

Explanation: In the upper left corner, surrounded by blue arms and
dotted with red nebulas, is spiral galaxy M81. In the lower right
corner, marked by a light central line and surrounded by red glowing
gas, is irregular galaxy M82. This stunning vista shows these two
mammoth galaxies locked in gravitational combat, as they have been for
the past billion years. The gravity from each galaxy dramatically
affects the other during each hundred-million-year pass. Last go-round,
M82's gravity likely raised density waves rippling around M81,
resulting in the richness of M81's spiral arms. But M81 left M82 with
violent star forming regions and colliding gas clouds so energetic the
galaxy glows in X-rays. This big battle is seen from Earth through the
faint glow of an Integrated Flux Nebula, a little studied complex of
diffuse gas and dust clouds in our Milky Way Galaxy. In a few billion
years, only one galaxy will remain.

Tomorrow's picture: incredible crab 1
__________________________________________________________________

Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
NASA Web Privacy, Accessibility, Notices;
A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
NASA Science Activation
& Michigan Tech. U.

--- BBBS/Li6 v4.10 Toy-7
* Origin: The Rusty MailBox - Penticton, BC Canada (1:153/757)

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
written by a professional astronomer.

2025 May 8
The Crab Nebula, M1, is shown as imaged by the James Webb Space
Telescope. The rollover image is the same Crab Nebula but this time
from the Hubble Space Telescope. The Webb image is in near infrared
light, while the Hubble image is in visible light. Please see the
explanation for more detailed information.

M1: The Incredible Expanding Crab
Image Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI; Jeff Hester (ASU), Allison Loll
(ASU), Tea Temim (Princeton University)

Explanation: Cataloged as M1, the Crab Nebula is the first on Charles
Messier's famous list of things which are not comets. In fact, the Crab
Nebula is now known to be a supernova remnant, an expanding cloud of
debris from the death explosion of a massive star. The violent birth of
the Crab was witnessed by astronomers in the year 1054. Roughly 10
light-years across, the nebula is still expanding at a rate of about
1,500 kilometers per second. You can see the expansion by comparing
these sharp images from the Hubble Space Telescope and James Webb Space
Telescope. The Crab's dynamic, fragmented filaments were captured in
visible light by Hubble in 2005 and Webb in infrared light in 2023.
This cosmic crustacean lies about 6,500 light-years away in the
constellation Taurus.

Tomorrow's picture: interstellar particle beams
__________________________________________________________________

Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices
A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
NASA Science Activation
& Michigan Tech. U.

--- BBBS/Li6 v4.10 Toy-7
* Origin: The Rusty MailBox - Penticton, BC Canada (1:153/757)

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
written by a professional astronomer.

2025 May 9
An artist's illustration of what the surroundings of the supermassive
black hole at the center of BL Lac is shown. A white jet protrudes
horizontally toward the bottom of the image, emanating from a orange
accretion disk surrounding a black hole. Please see the explanation for
more detailed information.

IXPE Explores a Black Hole Jet
Illustration Credit: NASA, Pablo Garcia

Explanation: How do black holes create X-rays? Answering this
long-standing question was significantly advanced recently with data
taken by NASACÇÖs IXPE satellite. X-rays cannot exit a black hole, but
they can be created in the energetic environment nearby, in particular
by a jet of particles moving outward. By observing X-ray light arriving
from near the supermassive black hole at the center of galaxy BL Lac,
called a blazar, it was discovered that these X-rays lacked significant
polarization, which is expected when created more by energetic
electrons than protons. In the featured artistic illustration, a
powerful jet is depicted emanating from an orange-colored accretion
disk circling the black hole. Understanding highly energetic processes
across the universe helps humanity to understand similar processes that
occur on or near our Earth.

Put it All Together: Astronomy Puzzle of the Day
Tomorrow's picture: Yogi on Mars: 3D
__________________________________________________________________

Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
NASA Web Privacy, Accessibility, Notices;
A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
NASA Science Activation
& Michigan Tech. U.

--- BBBS/Li6 v4.10 Toy-7
* Origin: The Rusty MailBox - Penticton, BC Canada (1:153/757)

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
written by a professional astronomer.

2025 May 10

Yogi and Friends in 3D
Image Credit: Mars Pathfinder Mission, JPL, NASA

Explanation: This picture from July 1997 shows a ramp from the
Pathfinder lander, the Sojourner robot rover, deflated landing airbags,
a couch, Barnacle Bill and Yogi Rock appear together in this 3D stereo
view of the surface of Mars. Barnacle Bill is the rock just left of the
house cat-sized, solar-paneled Sojourner. Yogi is the big
friendly-looking boulder at top right. The "couch" is the angular rock
shape visible near center on the horizon. Look at the image with
red/blue glasses (or just hold a piece of clear red plastic over your
left eye and blue or green over your right) to get the dramatic 3D
perspective. The stereo view was recorded by the remarkable Imager for
Mars Pathfinder (IMP) camera. The IMP had two optical paths for stereo
imaging and ranging and was equipped with an array of color filters for
spectral analysis. Operating as the first astronomical observatory on
Mars, the IMP also recorded images of the Sun and Deimos, the smallest
of Mars' two tiny moons.

Tomorrow's picture: if you could stand on Venus ...
__________________________________________________________________

Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices
A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
NASA Science Activation
& Michigan Tech. U.

--- BBBS/Li6 v4.10 Toy-7
* Origin: The Rusty MailBox - Penticton, BC Canada (1:153/757)

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
written by a professional astronomer.

2025 May 11
A black & white image shows an empty flat landscape filled with
flattened rocks. At the bottom is part of the spacecraft that captured
this image of the planet Venus. Please see the explanation for more
detailed information.

The Surface of Venus from Venera 14
Image Credit: Soviet Planetary Exploration Program, Venera 14;
Processing & Copyright: Donald Mitchell & Michael Carroll (used with
permission)

Explanation: If you could stand on Venus -- what would you see?
Pictured is the view from Venera 14, a robotic Soviet lander which
parachuted and air-braked down through the thick Venusian atmosphere in
March of 1982. The desolate landscape it saw included flat rocks, vast
empty terrain, and a featureless sky above Phoebe Regio near Venus'
equator. On the lower left is the spacecraft's penetrometer used to
make scientific measurements, while the light piece on the right is
part of an ejected lens-cap. Enduring temperatures near 450 degrees
Celsius and pressures 75 times that on Earth, the hardened Venera
spacecraft lasted only about an hour. Although data from Venera 14 was
beamed across the inner Solar System over 40 years ago, digital
processing and merging of Venera's unusual images continues even today.
Recent analyses of infrared measurements taken by ESA's orbiting Venus
Express spacecraft indicate that active volcanoes may currently exist
on Venus.

Jigsaw Fun: Astronomy Puzzle of the Day
Tomorrow's picture: Milky Way side view
__________________________________________________________________

Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
NASA Web Privacy, Accessibility, Notices;
A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
NASA Science Activation
& Michigan Tech. U.

--- BBBS/Li6 v4.10 Toy-7
* Origin: The Rusty MailBox - Penticton, BC Canada (1:153/757)

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
written by a professional astronomer.

2025 May 12
A dark field of space surrounds a thin but colorful band horizontally
across the center. The band is nearly straight but curves at its outer
edges. Please see the explanation for more detailed information.

Gaia Reconstructs a Side View of our Galaxy
Illustration Credit: ESA, Gaia, DPAC, Stefan Payne-Wardenaar

Explanation: What does our Milky Way Galaxy look like from the side?
Because we are on the inside, humanity canCÇÖt get an actual picture.
Recently, however, just such a map has been made using location data
for over a billion stars from ESACÇÖs Gaia mission. The resulting
featured illustration shows that just like many other spiral galaxies,
our Milky Way has a very thin central disk. Our Sun and all the stars
we see at night are in this disk. Although hypothesized before, perhaps
more surprising is that the disk appears curved at the outer edges. The
colors of our Galaxy's warped central band derive mostly from dark
dust, bright blue stars, and red emission nebulas. Although data
analysis is ongoing, Gaia was deactivated in March after a successful
mission.

Explore Your Universe: Random APOD Generator
Tomorrow's picture: again from the top
__________________________________________________________________

Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
NASA Web Privacy, Accessibility, Notices;
A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
NASA Science Activation
& Michigan Tech. U.

--- BBBS/Li6 v4.10 Toy-7
* Origin: The Rusty MailBox - Penticton, BC Canada (1:153/757)

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
written by a professional astronomer.

2025 May 13
A dark field surrounds a spiral galaxy with multiple arms. Please see
the explanation for more detailed information.

Gaia Reconstructs a Top View of our Galaxy
Illustration Credit: ESA, Gaia, DPAC, Stefan Payne-Wardenaar

Explanation: What does our Milky Way Galaxy look like from the top?
Because we are on the inside, humanity canCÇÖt get an actual picture.
Recently, however, just such a map has been made using location data
for over a billion stars from ESACÇÖs Gaia mission. The resulting
featured illustration shows that just like many other spiral galaxies,
our Milky Way has distinct spiral arms. Our Sun and most of the bright
stars we see at night are in just one arm: Orion. Gaia data bolsters
previous indications that our Milky Way has more than two spiral arms.
Our Galaxy's center sports a prominent bar. The colors of our Galaxy's
thin disk derive mostly from dark dust, bright blue stars, and red
emission nebula. Although data analysis is ongoing, Gaia was
deactivated in March after a succession mission.

Jigsaw Challenge: Astronomy Puzzle of the Day
Tomorrow's picture: big space egg
__________________________________________________________________

Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
NASA Web Privacy, Accessibility, Notices;
A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
NASA Science Activation
& Michigan Tech. U.

--- BBBS/Li6 v4.10 Toy-7
* Origin: The Rusty MailBox - Penticton, BC Canada (1:153/757)

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
written by a professional astronomer.

2025 May 14
A dark starfield highlights a blue and pink nebula in its center. Some
dark lanes of dust are seen inside nebula's center. Please see the
explanation for more detailed information.

NGC 1360: The Robin's Egg Nebula
Image Credit & Copyright: Andrea Iorio, Vikas Chander & ShaRA Team

Explanation: This pretty nebula lies some 1,500 light-years away, its
shape and color in this telescopic view reminiscent of a robin's egg.
The cosmic cloud spans about 3 light-years, nestled securely within the
boundaries of the southern constellation of the Furnace (Fornax).
Recognized as a planetary nebula, egg-shaped NGC 1360 doesn't represent
a beginning, though. Instead, it corresponds to a brief and final phase
in the evolution of an aging star. In fact, visible at the center of
the nebula, the central star of NGC 1360 is known to be a binary star
system likely consisting of two evolved white dwarf stars, less massive
but much hotter than the Sun. Their intense and otherwise invisible
ultraviolet radiation has stripped away electrons from the atoms in
their mutually surrounding gaseous shroud. The blue-green hue inside of
NGC 1360 seen here is the strong emission produced as electrons
recombine with doubly ionized oxygen atoms.

Celestial Surprise: What picture did APOD feature on your birthday?
(post 1995)
Tomorrow's picture: pluto below
__________________________________________________________________

Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
NASA Web Privacy, Accessibility, Notices;
A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
NASA Science Activation
& Michigan Tech. U.

--- BBBS/Li6 v4.10 Toy-7
* Origin: The Rusty MailBox - Penticton, BC Canada (1:153/757)