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.
Moons and Bright Mars
Explanation: In this serene view , the moons of Earth along with the bright planet Mars shine above the city of Turku near the southwestern tip of Finland. Of course Earth's large natural satellite, the Moon , at a distance of 400,000 kilometers, is by far the brightest object in this sky. But growing brighter and closer by the hour , Mars appears as the impressively bright “star” at the right, about 64 million kilometers from Turku . Streaking across the twilight sky between the two celestial beacons, Earth's largest artificial moon, the International Space Station , orbits about 400 kilometers above the planet's surface. To capture the moment, amateur astronomer Petteri Kankaro used a digital camera and combined exposures beginning at 23:34 Universal Time on July 17th .
| Date | August 1, 2003 |
|---|---|
| Credit | Credit & Copyright: Petteri Kankaro |
| Authors & editors: | Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP) |
| A service of: |
ASD at NASA / GSFC, NASA Science Activation & Michigan Tech. U. |



