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                           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.   
      
                                  2022 October 18   
      
                             Milky Way Auroral Flower   
                       Image Credit & Copyright: G÷ran Strand   
      
      Explanation: Could the stem of our Milky Way bloom into an auroral   
      flower? No, not really, even though it may appear that way in today's   
      featured all-sky image. On the left, the central plane of our home   
      galaxy extends from the horizon past the middle of the sky. On the   
      right, an auroral oval also extends from the sky's center -- but is   
      dominated by bright green-glowing oxygen. The two are not physically   
      connected, because the aurora is relatively nearby, with the higher red   
      parts occurring in Earth's atmosphere only about 1000 kilometers high.   
      In contrast, an average distance to the stars and nebulas we see in the   
      Milky Way more like 1000 light-years away - 10 trillion times further.   
      The featured image composite was taken in early October across a small   
      lake in Abisko, northern Sweden. As our Sun's magnetic field evolves   
      into the active part of its 11-year cycle, auroras near both of Earth's   
      poles are sure to become more frequent.   
      
                          Tomorrow's picture: galaxy grab   
        __________________________________________________________________   
      
          Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)   
               NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.   
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                         A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,   
                              NASA Science Activation   
                                & Michigan Tech. U.   
      
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