                        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 July 19

                 Anticrepuscular Rays at the Planet Festival
                   Image Credit & Copyright: Pavel Gabzdyl

   Explanation: For some, these subtle bands of light and shadow stretched
   across the sky as the Sun set on July 11. Known as anticrepuscular
   rays, the bands are formed as a large cloud bank near the western
   horizon cast long shadows through the atmosphere at sunset. Due to the
   camera's perspective, the bands of light and shadow seem to converge
   toward the eastern (opposite) horizon at a point seen just above a 14th
   century hilltop castle near Brno, Czech Republic. In the foreground,
   denizens of planet Earth are enjoying the region's annual Planet
   Festival in the park below the Brno Observatory and Planetarium. And
   while crepuscular and anticrepuscular rays are a relatively common
   atmospheric phenomenon, this festival's 10 meter diameter inflatable
   spheres representing bodies of the Solar System are less often seen on
   planet Earth.

                Tomorrow's picture: panorama on another world
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
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