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Explanation: If you live in the northern hemisphere, you may have learned how to locate the North Star, Polaris, in the night sky. It can be used to find north, and it approximately marks the northern celestial pole. If you live in the southern hemisphere, there is no bright star marking the southern celestial pole, but the Southern Cross can be used to find south. The featured image was taken in Padre Bernardo (GO), Brazil. It shows the apparent motion of the stars around the apparently empty southern celestial pole over 2 hours, on August 20, 2018. Each star takes about 24 hours to make a complete turn around the pole in the sky. Padre Bernardo is located in the Cerrado region, a tropical savanna that occupies most of central Brazil and supports rich biodiversity. The barren branch that apparently supports this sky wheel of rotating stars is a common sight there in the dry season during the southern winter.
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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: night sky
Publications with words: night sky
See also:
- APOD: 2025 July 1 Á Eye Sky a Dragon
- APOD: 2025 April 23 Á An Almost Everything Sky
- APOD: 2024 September 11 Á A Night Sky over the Tatra Mountains
- APOD: 2023 August 15 Á A Triply Glowing Night Sky over Iceland
- Sunset to Sunrise over the Baltic Sea
- An Artful Sky over Lofoten Islands
- A Furious Sky over Mount Shasta