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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.

Volcano and Aurora in Iceland

Explanation: Sometimes both heaven and Earth erupt. In Iceland in 1991, the volcano Hekla erupted at the same time that auroras were visible overhead. Hekla , one of the most famous volcanoes in the world, has erupted at least 20 times over the past millennium , sometimes causing great destruction . The last eruption occurred only twelve years ago but caused only minor damage . The green auroral band occurred fortuitously about 100 kilometers above the erupting lava . Is Earth the Solar System's only planet with both auroras and volcanos ?

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Date July 8, 2012
Credit Image Credit & Copyright: Sigurdur H. Stefnisson
Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
NASA Science Activation & Michigan Tech. U.