Milky Way with Airglow Australis

ApoD shared this fabulous astronomy picture of the day on 2017 February 3 (see>> https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap170203.html).

What is an airglow?

Well, airglow (also called nightglow) is a faint emission of light by a planetary atmosphere. In the case of Earth's atmosphere, this optical phenomenon causes the night sky never to be completely dark, even after the effects of starlight and diffused sunlight from the far side are removed.

Airglow is caused by various processes in the upper atmosphere, such as the recombination of atoms which were photoionized by the sun during the day, luminescence caused by cosmic rays striking the upper atmosphere, and chemiluminescence caused mainly by oxygen and nitrogen reacting with hydroxyl ions at heights of a few hundred kilometres. It is not noticeable during the daytime because of the scattered light from the sun.

Captured last April after sunset on a Chilean autumn night an exceptionally intense airglow flooded this scene. The panoramic skyscape is also filled with stars, clusters, and nebulae along the southern Milky Way including the Large and Small Magellanic clouds.

Originating at an altitude similar to aurorae, the luminous airglow is due to chemiluminescence, the production of light through chemical excitation. Commonly recorded with a greenish tinge by sensitive digital cameras, both red and green airglow emission here is predominately from atmospheric oxygen atoms at extremely low densities and has often been present in southern hemisphere nights during the last few years.

Like the Milky Way on that dark night the strong airglow was visible to the eye, but seen without color. Mars, Saturn, and bright star Antares in Scorpius form the celestial triangle anchoring the scene on the left. The road leads toward the 2,600 meter high mountain Cerro Paranal and the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescopes.

► Image Credit & Copyright: Yuri Beletsky (Carnegie Las Campanas Observatory, TWAN)

Further reading and references

► Airglow Formation>> http://www.atoptics.co.uk/highsky/airglow2.htm

► Airglow and Earth's Magnetic Field>>
https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/goddard/2016/airglow-and-earths-magnetic-field

► Airglow>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airglow

#Astrophotography, #Airglow, #NaturalPhenomena, #Earth, MilkyWay

Orion and Green Airglow

Bright swaths of green in the Earth's upper atmosphere, known as airglow, can be seen over China.

Credit: Tony Pan (杨 潘)
Release Date: November 4, 2016

Technical details: Sony A7 (mod) + FE55/1.8

+Commission for Dark Skies

#Earth #Astronomy #Space #Stars #Orion #Airglow #Nebula #MilkyWay #Galaxy #SolarSystem #Cosmos #Universe #Skywatching #Astrophotography #Photography #China #中国 #LightPollution #STEM #Education

Amazing Airglow over Easter Island
"What is going on in the night sky over Easter Island in the Southern Pacific?! No, this is not fire. :) We are witnessing quite strong red airglow in the upper atmosphere. Intensity of airglow varies and sometimes it can be more prominent, especially when we use digital cameras to capture the phenomenon. I took this image at Anakena Beach, located on the northern part of the island. Besides the palm trees in the foreground you can also see the lights of a yacht which was anchored not far from the coast. I hope you'll enjoy the view!"

Easter Island is a Chilean island in the southeastern Pacific Ocean, at the southeasternmost point of the Polynesian Triangle. Easter Island is famous for its 887 extant monumental statues, called moai, created by the early Rapa Nui people. In 1995, UNESCO named Easter Island a World Heritage Site, with much of the island protected within Rapa Nui National Park. (Source: Wikipedia)

Credit: Yuri Beletsky
Yuri's website: https://500px.com/ybeletsky
Location: Easter Island, Chile
Release Date: October 2, 2016

+Yuri Beletsky 
+UNESCO 

#Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #Airglow #EasterIsland #Pacific #Ocean #Chile #SolarSystem #Astrophotography #Art #STEM #Education #Isla #Pascua 

Orion and Green Airglow over China

Unlike auroras powered by collisions with energetic charged particles and seen at high latitudes, airglow is due to chemiluminescence, the production of light in a chemical reaction. Airglow keeps the night sky from ever being completely dark.

Credit: Tony Pan (杨 潘)
Location: Sichuan, China
Release Date: November 4, 2016

Technical details: Sony A7 (mod) +FE55/1.8

#Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #Orion #Airglow #MilkyWay #Galaxy #Astrophotography #Art #China #Sichuan #Province #中国 #四川省

Aurora, Airglow & Milky Way
"I took a trip to Saaremaa in Estonia in search of some light pollution free skies...but the sky was full of lights, even without the moon and artificial lights. Auroras were blazing far in the north and the rest of the sky was colored with airglow and the Milky Way was shining majestically in between it all. That's some light pollution I don't mind about! What a night! It's such a shame that I really have to make a big trip away from Helsinki in order to find some really dark skies!"

Credit: Mika-Pekka Markkanen
Location: Harilaid Peninsula, Vilsandi NP, Saaremaa, Estonia
Image Date: September 2, 2016

Technical details:
Nikon D600 & Samyang 14mm f/2.8:
f/2.8, 30 seconds, ISO 5000

+Commission for Dark Skies 

#Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #MilkyWay #Galaxy #Aurora #Borealis #NorthernLights #Airglow #Earth #Estonia #Eesti #Europe #Astrophotography #Art #LightPollution #STEM #Education 

Aurora, Airglow & Milky Way
"I took a trip to Saaremaa in Estonia in search of some light pollution free skies...but the sky was full of lights, even without the moon and artificial lights. Auroras were blazing far in the north and the rest of the sky was colored with airglow and the Milky Way was shining majestically in between it all. That's some light pollution I don't mind about! What a night! It's such a shame that I really have to make a big trip away from Helsinki in order to find some really dark skies!"

Credit: Mika-Pekka Markkanen
Location: Harilaid Peninsula, Vilsandi NP, Saaremaa, Estonia
Image Date: September 2, 2016

Technical details:
Nikon D600 & Samyang 14mm f/2.8:
f/2.8, 30 seconds, ISO 5000

+Commission for Dark Skies 

#Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #MilkyWay #Galaxy #Aurora #Borealis #NorthernLights #Airglow #Earth #Estonia #Eesti #Europe #Astrophotography #Art #LightPollution #STEM #Education 

Meteor Smoke!
Perseid Meteor Ion Trail Amid Airglow
Alan: "A long-lasting 'smoke' or ion trail from a bright meteor in the Big Dipper, with a northern sky coloured by aurora and by green bands of airglow. Taken August 11, 2016, peak night of the Perseids, from 70 Mile Butte in Grasslands National Park, Saskatchewan, a dark sky preserve."

Grasslands National Park
www.pc.gc.ca/eng/pn-np/sk/grasslands/index.aspx

Technical details: This is a single 30-second exposure at f/1.4 with the 20mm Sigma Art lens, and Nikon D750 at ISO 3200.

Credit: Alan Dyer
Alan's Website: http://amazingsky.net
Image Date: August 12, 2016

+Alan Dyer 
+Saskatchewan Science Centre 

#Astronomy #Space #Satellite #Science #Stars #Airglow #MeteorShower #Meteors #Meteor #Smoke #MeteorSmoke #IonTrail #Bolides #Perseid #Perseids #Perseus #Earth #Saskatchewan #Canada #Photography #Astrophotography #Art #STEM #Education

Intense Airglow over Maine
"The craziest airglow I've ever witnessed/photographed. This is facing due east and was captured on the Schoodic Peninsula in Acadia National Park this past Friday night, Sept 2, 2016. An LED light panel was quickly used to light up the road. I was with 3 other photographers and we all saw this with our naked eyes."

Acadia National Park (U.S.)
www.nps.gov/acad/index.htm

Credit: Mike Taylor
Mike's website: http://miketaylorphoto.com
Location: Acadia National Park, Maine, United States
Image Date: September 2, 2016

+Mike Taylor 

#Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #Airglow #Astrophotography #Art #Earth #Maine #Schoodic #Peninsula #Acadia #NationalPark #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Milky Way with Airglow Australis
Captured last April after sunset on a Chilean winter's night an exceptionally intense airglow flooded this scene. The panoramic skyscape is also filled with stars, clusters, and nebulae along the southern Milky Way including the Large and Small Magellanic clouds. Originating at an altitude similar to aurorae, the luminous airglow is due to chemiluminescence, the production of light through chemical excitation.

Commonly recorded with a greenish tinge by sensitive digital cameras, both red and green airglow emission here is predominately from atmospheric oxygen atoms at extremely low densities and has often been present in southern hemisphere nights during the last few years. Like the Milky Way on that dark night the strong airglow was visible to the eye, but seen without color. Mars, Saturn, and bright star Antares in Scorpius form the celestial triangle anchoring the scene on the left. The road leads toward the 2,600 meter high mountain Cerro Paranal and the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescopes.

Image & info via APOD
https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html
Image Credit & Copyright: Yuri Beletsky (Carnegie Las Campanas Observatory, TWAN)

Airglow read & learn:
http://www.atoptics.co.uk/highsky/airglow2.htm

#naturalphenomena #airglow #universe #NASA #space #science