Aurora Ablaze

The aurora borealis lights up land and sky in Manitoba, as seen from the ISS. (NASA)

A very active Aurora Borealis was photographed by one of the Expedition 30 crew members aboard the International Space Station flying approximately 240 miles above Manitoba, Canada on Jan. 25, 2012. Lake Winnipeg (lower right center) and the major city Winnipeg (bottom center) are easily recognizable in the nighttime scene.

Daytime Moon, Hello Venus!

Saturday Feb .25 brought a view of the Moon and Venus. (J. Major)

What a weekend for sky gazing! As promised in Friday’s article on Universe Today, Venus was visible during the daylight hours this Saturday, very close to the crescent Moon. If you had clear weather you too may have been able to catch a glimpse of the scene above, photographed from my location in north Texas at 6:35 p.m. local time.

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