                        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.

                                 2024 May 16

                               Aurora Georgia
                   Image Credit & Copyright: Wright Dobbs

   Explanation: A familiar sight from Georgia, USA, the Moon sets near the
   western horizon in this rural night skyscape. Captured on May 10 before
   local midnight, the image overexposes the Moon's bright waning crescent
   at left in the frame. A long irrigation rig stretches across farmland
   about 15 miles north of the city of Bainbridge. Shimmering curtains of
   aurora shine across the starry sky, definitely an unfamiliar sight for
   southern Georgia nights. Last weekend, extreme geomagnetic storms
   triggered by the recent intense activity from solar active region AR
   3664 brought epic displays of aurora, usually seen closer to the poles,
   to southern Georgia and even lower latitudes on planet Earth. As solar
   activity ramps up, more storms are possible.

                AuroraSaurus: Report your aurora observations
                     Tomorrow's picture: pixels in space
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
                   NASA Web Privacy, Accessibility Notices
                      A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
                           NASA Science Activation
                             & Michigan Tech. U.

