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Credit & Copyright: Vincent Duparc
Explanation:
Meteor showers are caused by streams of solid particles,
dust size and larger, moving as a group through space.
In most cases, the orbits of these
meteor streams can be identified with
dust expelled from a comet.
When the Earth passes through a stream,
the particles leave brilliant trails through the night sky as they disintegrate in
Earth's
atmosphere.
The meteor paths are all
parallel to each other, but,
like
train tracks,
the effect of perspective causes them to appear to originate from a
radiant point in the distance.
The featured image composite was taken during January's
Quadrantid meteor shower from
La Palma,
one of Spain's
Canary Islands, off the northwest coast of
Africa.
The Quadrantids
radiant is visible just below the handle of the
Big Dipper.
A careful eye will also discern the faint
green coma of
Comet Wirtanen.
Tonight is the peak of the modest
Lyrid meteor shower, with several
meteors per hour visible from dark locations with clear skies.
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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: meteor - comet
Publications with words: meteor - comet
See also:
- APOD: 2024 April 17 Á Total Eclipse and Comets
- APOD: 2024 April 8 Á The Changing Ion Tail of Comet Pons Brooks
- Comet Pons-Brooks at Night
- APOD: 2024 March 18 Á Comet Pons Brooks Swirling Coma
- Comet 12P/Pons Brooks in Northern Spring
- Meteor over the Bay of Naples
- Structure in the Tail of Comet 12P/Pons Brooks