Moon, Planets, and Rocket Trails

Explanation: Are you an early riser ? Over the last month or so, the bright planets Jupiter and Saturn have come to adorn eastern skies before sunrise . In fact, astro photographer Joe Orman anticipated that an early bird's reward for looking east on June 10 would be this pleasing arrangement of Jupiter (top right), a crescent Moon, and Saturn (near center), but he was surprised to also find these eerie, iridescent clouds wafting through the pre-dawn sky over suburban Phoenix, Arizona, USA. The clouds turned out to be rocket engine trails from defense missile tests at the range in White Sands , New Mexico ... about 300 miles away. While the Moon's phase is just past new moon , gone now from the pre-dawn horizon, brilliant Jupiter and Saturn can still be seen high toward the southeast in the constellation Aries.