Today's Image

Flower pointers to Magellanic Clouds

Image via Hilde Hoven/Good Heavens Co.

Hilde Hovens captured this image on December 15, 2017. Hilde wrote:

Great Barrier Island has just been declared a Dark Sky Sanctuary by the International Dark Sky Association in 2017. Only 90 kilometers (56 miles) away from New Zealand’s capital Auckland, the island doesn’t suffer from light pollution as it’s completely off-the-grid: a great place to have a dark sky experience.

This photo was taken just after astronomical twilight had started. Two flax flowers are pointing to the Small and the Large Magellanic Clouds.

The Small and Large Magellanic Clouds look like two hazy patches in the skies of Earth’s Southern Hemisphere. They are satellite galaxies to the Milky Way, orbiting around it. Learn more about them here:

Small Magellanic Cloud

Large Megallanic Cloud

Bottom line: Photo from Great Barrier Island, New Zealand shows the Small and Large Megallanic Clouds.

Posted 
January 4, 2018
 in 
Today's Image

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