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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.

Otherworldly Planet Rise

Explanation: What would a sunrise look like on another world? So far, humanity has only recorded sunrises on Mars and Earth , but it is fun to wonder what they would look like on planets known and yet unknown . Planets far from their parent star would record the rise of an unusually bright point of light rather than a round orb. Although this might appear to be what is pictured above, the careful combination of long exposures and creative lighting is actually based on Venus-rise from planet Earth a few weeks ago, captured through Mesa Arch in Canyonlands National Park , Utah , USA . Picturesque buttes and mesas dot the background landscape. The orange sky is created by air scattering and dust, but is likely reminiscent of dusty skyscapes on Mars . Sunrise was set to occur a few minutes hence, and did indeed involve a round orb .

Date April 11, 2011
Credit Credit & Copyright: Robert Arn ( Colorado St. U. )
Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
NASA Science Activation & Michigan Tech. U.