                        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.

                               2023 November 6
   The night sky over a valley is shown complete with the central band of
   the Milky Way Galaxy crossing up from the lower left. On the right the
     sky just over the hill glows an unusual red: aurora. Please see the
                 explanation for more detailed information.

                            Red Aurora over Italy
                   Image Credit & Copyright: Giorgia Hofer

   Explanation: What was that red glow on the horizon last night? Aurora.
   Our unusually active Sun produced a surface explosion a few days ago
   that sent out a burst of electrons, protons, and more massive charged
   nuclei. This coronal mass ejection (CME) triggered auroras here on
   Earth that are being reported unusually far south in Earth's northern
   hemisphere. For example, this was the first time that the
   astrophotographer captured aurora from her home country of Italy.
   Additionally, many images from these auroras appear quite red in color.
   In the featured image, the town of Comelico Superiore in the Italian
   Alps is visible in the foreground, with the central band of our Milky
   Way galaxy seen rising from the lower left. What draws the eye the
   most, though, is the bright red aurora on the far right. The featured
   image is a composite with the foreground and background images taken
   consecutively with the same camera and from the same location.

                Aurora Album: Selected images sent in to APOD
                      Tomorrow's picture: devil on mars
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
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