An Unexpected Aurora over Norway An Unexpected Aurora over Norway

Sometimes the sky lights up unexpectedly. A trip to northern Norway to photograph auroras was not going as well as hoped. It was now past midnight in Steinsvik, Troms, in northern Norway, and the date was 2014 February 8. Despite recent activity on the Sun, the skies were disappointing. Therefore, the astrophotographer began packing up to go. His brother began searching for a missing lens cap. When the sky suddenly exploded with spectacular aurora. Reacting quickly, a sequence detailing dramatic green curtains was captured, with the bright Moon near the image center, and the lens-cap seeking brother on the far right. The auroral flare lasted only a few minutes, but the memory of this event, the photographer speculates, will last much longer. via NASA http://ift.tt/1KFXrt3

#MayThe4thBeWithYou! We're celebrating #StarWars Day with this mesmerizing photo from Natural Bridges #NationalMonument in #Utah. #NaturalBridges has one of the darkest night skies in the U.S. -- it’s possible to see up to 15,000 stars throughout the night. Pictured here is the #MilkyWay above Owachomo Bridge (one of the park's three natural bridges) by Manish Mamtani, http://ift.tt/18oFfjl. 🌌 by usinterior

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Moonrise Through Mauna Keas Shadow Moonrise Through Mauna Keas Shadow

How can the Moon rise through a mountain? It cannot -- what was photographed here is a moonrise through the shadow of a large volcano. The volcano is Mauna Kea, Hawai'i, USA, a frequent spot for spectacular photographs since it is arguably the premier observing location on planet Earth. The Sun has just set in the opposite direction, behind the camera. Additionally, the Moon has just passed full phase -- were it precisely at full phase it would rise, possibly eclipsed, at the very peak of the shadow. The Moon is actually rising in the triangular shadow cone of the volcano, a corridor of darkness that tapers off in the distance like converging train tracks. The Moon is too large and too far away to be affected by the shadow of the volcano. Refraction of moonlight through the Earth's atmosphere makes the Moon appear slightly oval. Cinder cones from old volcanic eruptions are visible in the foreground. via NASA http://ift.tt/1EN8EHk

Long-range vistas, rolling #mountains and pastoral landscapes, #BlueRidgeParkway is America’s favorite drive, and we can definitely see why. @BlueRidgeNPS meanders for 469 miles, connecting Shenandoah #NationalPark in #Virginia and Great #SmokyMountains National Park in #NorthCarolina and providing opportunities for enjoying all that makes this region so special. #Sunset from the Parkway by Chris Mobley (http://ift.tt/18oFfjl). by usinterior

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M51: The Whirlpool Galaxy M51: The Whirlpool Galaxy

Follow the handle of the Big Dipper away from the dipper's bowl until you get to the handle's last bright star. Then, just slide your telescope a little south and west and you might find this stunning pair of interacting galaxies, the 51st entry in Charles Messier famous catalog. Perhaps the original spiral nebula, the large galaxy with well defined spiral structure is also cataloged as NGC 5194. Its spiral arms and dust lanes clearly sweep in front of its companion galaxy (right), NGC 5195. The pair are about 31 million light-years distant and officially lie within the angular boundaries of the small constellation Canes Venatici. Though M51 looks faint and fuzzy to the eye, deep images like this one can reveal striking colors and the faint tidal debris around the smaller galaxy via NASA http://ift.tt/1I0dxhi

A pink #sunset and purple #mountains majesty: The always stunning #GrandTeton #NationalPark in #Wyoming. Duane Jurma (@duanejurma) captured this pic from @grandtetonnps's #SnakeRiver Overlook. Of the experience, he says, "In that moment, I felt so small as I stood in awe of the massive peaks and listened to the flow of the mighty Snake River.” Photo courtesy of @duanejurma. by usinterior

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MESSENGER's Last Day on Mercury MESSENGER's Last Day on Mercury

The first to orbit Mercury, the MESSENGER spacecraft came to rest on this region of Mercury's surface yesterday. Constructed from MESSENGER image and laser altimeter data, the scene looks north over the northeastern rim of the broad, lava filled Shakespeare basin. The large, 48 kilometer (30 mile) wide crater Janacek is near the upper left edge. Terrain height is color coded with red regions about 3 kilometers above blue ones. MESSENGER'S final orbit was predicted to end near the center, with the spacecraft impacting the surface at nearly 4 kilometers per second (over 8,700 miles per hour) and creating a new crater about 16 meters (52 feet) in diameter. The impact on the far side of Mercury was not observed by telescopes, but confirmed when no signal was detected from the spacecraft given time to emerge from behind the planet. Launched in 2004, the MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemisty and Ranging spacecraft completed over 4,000 orbits after reaching the Solar System's innermost planet in 2011. via NASA http://ift.tt/1EygYcP

Witnessing the #northernlights dance overhead never disappoints. This magnificent photo of the #auroraborealis was taken from the #ToklatRiver at #Denali #NationalPark in #Alaska. Photo courtesy of Daniel A. Leifheit (@danleifheit). by usinterior

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Spring is a wonderful time to visit Great Swamp National #WildlifeRefuge in #NewJersey. Located just 26 miles from New York City's Times Square, the @usfws refuge consists of 7,768 acres of varied habitats, making it an important resting and feeding area for more than 244 species of birds. #Fox, deer, muskrat, fish, and a wide variety of wildflowers and plants can be found on the refuge -- like this cute little #redfox kit. Photo by Matt Sullivan. 🐺🐺🐺 by usinterior

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Across the Sun Across the Sun

A long solar filament stretches across the relatively calm surface of the Sun in this telescopic snap shot from April 27. The negative or inverted narrowband image was made in the light of ionized hydrogen atoms. Seen at the upper left, the magnificent curtain of magnetized plasma towers above surface and actually reaches beyond the Sun's edge. How long is the solar filament? About as long as the distance from Earth to Moon, illustrated by the scale insert at the left. Tracking toward the right across the solar disk a day later the long filament erupted, lifting away from the Sun's surface. Monitored by Sun staring satellites, a coronal mass ejection was also blasted from the site but is expected to swing wide of our fair planet. via NASA http://ift.tt/1zs3mAW