Astronomy Picture of the Day

                         Astronomy Picture of the Day

    Discover the cosmos! [1] Each day a different image or photograph of our
 fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a
                           professional astronomer.

                               2018 December 16
                                      [2]
                      Comet Wirtanen Passes by the Earth
    Image Credit & Copyright: Ruslan Merzlyakov [3] (RMS Photography [4] )

Explanation: Today Comet Wirtanen passes by the Earth. The kilometer-sized
dirty snowball orbits the Sun every 5.4 years, ranging as far out as Jupiter
[5]  and as close in as the Earth [6] . Today Comet 46P/Wirtanen [7]  passes
within only 31 lunar distances to the Earth, the closest approach in 70 years.
If you know where to look [8]  (Taurus), you can see the comet [9]  through
binoculars as an unusual blue smudge [10] . Pictured [11]  a week ago, Comet
Wirtanen was photographed in the sky beyond an old abandoned church in Skagen
[12] , Denmark [13] . The image composite also captures the astrophotographer.
After today [14] , the comet will begin to fade as it [15]  recedes from the
Earth and the Sun.

                 Free Download: 2019 APOD Calendar (v5) [16]
                   Tomorrow's picture: the galaxy next door

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    Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff [28] (MTU [29] ) & Jerry Bonnell [30]
                                  (UMCP [31] )
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Site notes:
  [1] archivepix.html
  [2] image/1812/CometWirtanen_Merzlyakov_714.jpg
  [3] https://www.facebook.com/rmerzlyakov
  [4] https://www.facebook.com/rmsphotography95/
  [5] ap181214.html
  [6] https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/earth/ov...
  [7] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/46P/Wirtanen
  [8] https://theskylive.com/46p-info
  [9] https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/comets/...
  [10] ap181115.html
  [11]
https://www.facebook.com/rmsphotography95/pho...
1535643489871816/?type=3&theater
  [12] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skagen
  [13] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denmark
  [14] https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/night/
  [15] ap181215.html
  [16] https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1812/ApodCal...
  [17] ap181215.html
  [18] archivepix.html
  [19] lib/apsubmit2015.html
  [20] lib/aptree.html
  [21] https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apo...
  [22] calendar/allyears.html
  [23] /apod.rss
  [24] lib/edlinks.html
  [25] lib/about_apod.html
  [26] http://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?dat...
  [27] ap181217.html
  [28] http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
  [29] http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
  [30] https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnel...
  [31] http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  [32] lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  [33] https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Priv...
  [34] https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  [35] https://www.nasa.gov/
  [36] https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  [37] http://www.mtu.edu/

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