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APOD

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.

See Explanation. Clicking on the picture will download the highest resolution version available.

Twilight in a Flower

Explanation: Transformed into the petals of a flower, 16 exposures show the passage of day into night in this creative timelapse skyscape . Start at the top and move counterclockwise to follow consecutive moments as the twilight sky turns an ever darker blue and night blossoms. Each exposure was recorded on the evening of April 22 , calculated to maintain a consistent balance of light and color. Close to the western horizon on that date, a crescent Moon and Venus are the two brightest celestial beacons . Petal to petal the pair spiral closer to the flower's center. In silhouette around the center of the twilight flower are Sicily's megalithic rocks of Argimusco .

Date May 6, 2023
Credit Image Credit & Copyright: Dario Giannobile
Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
NASA Science Activation & Michigan Tech. U.