APOD: A Little Like Mars (2021 Mar 05)

Comments and questions about the APOD on the main view screen.
User avatar
APOD Robot
Otto Posterman
Posts: 5599
Joined: Fri Dec 04, 2009 3:27 am

APOD: A Little Like Mars (2021 Mar 05)

Post by APOD Robot » Fri Mar 05, 2021 5:07 am

Image A Little Like Mars

Explanation: The surface of this planet looks a little like Mars. It's really planet Earth though. In a digitally stitched little planet projection, the 360 degree mosaic was captured near San Pedro in the Chilean Atacama desert. Telescopes in domes on the horizon are taking advantage of the region's famously dark, clear nights. Taken in early December, a magnificent Milky Way arcs above the horizon for almost 180 degrees around the little planet with Orion prominent in the southern sky. A familiar constellation upside down for northern hemisphere skygazers, Orion shares that southern December night almost opposite the Large and Small Magellanic clouds. But the Red Planet itself is the brightest yellowish celestial beacon in this little planet sky.

<< Previous APOD This Day in APOD Next APOD >>

User avatar
orin stepanek
Plutopian
Posts: 8200
Joined: Wed Jul 27, 2005 3:41 pm
Location: Nebraska

Re: APOD: A Little Like Mars (2021 Mar 05)

Post by orin stepanek » Fri Mar 05, 2021 2:19 pm

The image with the rover was cute1 8-) Most times I'm not into this type of photo! I/d copy the rover photo; cept my computer is need of resetting! :spam:
Orin

Smile today; tomorrow's another day!

Uncle Jeff

Re: APOD: A Little Like Mars (2021 Mar 05)

Post by Uncle Jeff » Fri Mar 05, 2021 5:04 pm

What's the bright blue star toward the lower right (beyond the LMC)? The projection has me too disoriented to puzzle it out. All I know is that it's not Sirius, Canopus or any star in Orion, because those are labeled elsewhere.

PS: I really like pics that display labels when I hover with my cursor. I try to remember to hover on each day's picture so I might learn more, so encourage your label makers to enhance as many pics as they can where the info would be instructive :)

Thanks!

Sa Ji Tario

Re: APOD: A Little Like Mars (2021 Mar 05)

Post by Sa Ji Tario » Fri Mar 05, 2021 7:22 pm

Uncle Jeff is Achernar, Alpha Eri

Knight of Clear Skies
Ensign
Posts: 96
Joined: Mon Jul 25, 2016 9:02 am

Re: APOD: A Little Like Mars (2021 Mar 05)

Post by Knight of Clear Skies » Fri Mar 05, 2021 7:34 pm

Sa Ji Tario wrote: Fri Mar 05, 2021 7:22 pm Uncle Jeff is Achernar, Alpha Eri
I believe Archenar is the least spherical star known, due to its rapid rotation.

Image
Caradon Observatory, Cornwall, UK.

User avatar
Ann
4725 Å
Posts: 13858
Joined: Sat May 29, 2010 5:33 am

Re: APOD: A Little Like Mars (2021 Mar 05)

Post by Ann » Sat Mar 06, 2021 6:23 am

Thank you, Si Ji Tario and Knight of Clear Skies, for your informative posts! :D

I was about to say something about this APOD, but I didn't get around to it. But I like it quite a lot.

It's fascinating that the two brightest-looking stars in the sky, Sirius and Canopus, are located so relatively close to one another - but I, in Sweden, can never see Canopus!

Canopus, an F-type star, looks interestingly blue. Yes, and it is interestingly blue. Its B-V index is 0.16, which is bluer than well-known A-type star Altair of the Summer Triangle, not seen in this APOD. At least I can't find it. But I'm not sure of the faint blue and yellow stars seen below the tiny Earth in teh APOD.

Reddish Gum Nebula looks glorious next to Canopus. Can you see two small but distinctive-looking blue stars inside the Gum Nebula? They are Zeta Puppis (the topmost one) and Gamma Velorum (the bottom one). Both Zeta Puppis and Gamma Velorum are magnificent O-type stars, but Gamma Velorum is a multiple star that also contains the nearest Wolf-Rayet star in the sky.

Ann
Color Commentator

Sa Ji Tario

Re: APOD: A Little Like Mars (2021 Mar 05)

Post by Sa Ji Tario » Sat Mar 06, 2021 2:12 pm

Ann, ¡It is MY heaven!, I live in the north of Argentina (-27º27 lat)