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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.   
      
                                   2023 July 31   
      A dark irregularly-shaped moon is seen in front of the red planet Mars.   
        Craters are visible in the foreground and the edge of the planet is   
       just visible at the top of the image. Please see the explanation for   
                            more detailed information.   
      
                                 Phobos over Mars   
      Image Credit: ESA, DLR, FU Berlin, Mars Express; Processing & CC BY 2.0   
                               License: Andrea Luck   
      
      Explanation: Why is Phobos so dark? Phobos, the largest and innermost   
      of the two Martian moons, is the darkest moon in the entire Solar   
      System. Its unusual orbit and color indicate that it may be a captured   
      asteroid composed of a mixture of ice and dark rock. The featured   
      assigned-color picture of Phobos near the edge of Mars was captured in   
      late 2021 by ESA's robot spacecraft Mars Express, currently orbiting   
      Mars. Phobos is a heavily cratered and barren moon, with its largest   
      crater located on the far side. From images like this, Phobos has been   
      determined to be covered by perhaps a meter of loose dust. Phobos   
      orbits so close to Mars that from some places it would appear to rise   
      and set twice a day, while from other places it would not be visible at   
      all. Phobos' orbit around Mars is continually decaying -- it will   
      likely break up with pieces crashing to the Martian surface in about 50   
      million years.   
      
        Your Sky Surprise: What picture did APOD feature on your birthday?   
                                    (post 1995)   
                   Tomorrow's picture: monster at the Sun's edge   
        __________________________________________________________________   
      
          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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