Starship Asterisk*

As well as adding my voice to those perplexed by the lights in Western Australia, I didn't know North Central Russia was so populous... unless (perhaps) like teh Gulf of Guinea (Nigeria) these are oil installations lighting the place up?

Although it is thought that these orbs formed naturally

I'm still trying to figure out what alternatives might be....

OK OK...
[sings]
Well I'm not dumb but I can't understand
Why it looks like a pizza but shines like a moon
[/sings]

(I guess I'd better not gice up the day job just yet...)

[sings]
"When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie...."
[/sings]

Well, thanks Ann - I understand there may be all kinds of light-illusions going on, nevertheless I stil find it hard to understand what makes those lower foreground rings "disappear" like they do! Mind you, I dare say there's a lot of things I fail to understand!

Re this image of Saturn: http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap090111.html - one of my favourites - can somoene please explain why or how it is that the outer foreground rings appear to go behind the planet? (Just above where you can see the sun peeking out...) This has long bothered me...
Thanks...

This is great picture, but... really APOD I expect better of you than a statement such as "Imagine a pipe as wide as a state and as long as the Earth" Which state would that be - Texas or Vermont? And as for "as long as the Earth"... makes my head spin! But keep up the good work ...