Astronomy Picture of the Day

   [1]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.

                               2026 August 15
    [2]See Explanation. Clicking on the picture will download the highest
                        resolution version available.

                         Bright Perseids from Sweden
      Image Credit & [3]Copyright: P-M Hedén ([4]Clear Skies, [5]TWAN)

   Explanation: Known for its bright and fast meteors, the annual
   [6]Perseid Meteor Shower comes to [7]planet Earth's skies from a
   radiant in the heroic constellation Perseus. The popular northern
   summer celestial spectacle is created as grains of dust cast off
   [8]along the orbit of periodic comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle [9]vaporize in
   Earth's dense atmosphere, tracing brief, but beautiful [10]streaks
   through the night. Taken near the shower's peak of activity on August
   12, this composite image recorded two bright perseid meteors and one
   meteor's watery reflection from a location near the coastal village of
   Grisslehamn, Sweden. Almost as bright as Altair, brightest star on the
   scene, the meteors appear along with the faint, diffuse background of
   the Milky Way. This year, the shower's peak activity coincided with a
   New Moon, so perseid meteor flashes were undiminished by [11]bright
   moonlight. And for many skywatchers, this night of bright perseid
   meteors followed [12]their viewing of the silhouette of the New Moon in
   a much anticipated [13]solar eclipse.

            Growing Gallery: [14]Solar Eclipse of 2026 August 12
               Tomorrow's picture: Milky Way over Yellowstone
     __________________________________________________________________

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      Authors & editors: [26]Robert Nemiroff ([27]MTU) & Jerry Bonnell
                                 ([28]UMCP)
          NASA Official: Amber Straughn [29]Specific rights apply.
            [30]NASA Web Privacy, [31]Accessibility, [32]Notices;
                A service of: [33]ASD at [34]NASA / [35]GSFC,
                         [36]NASA Science Activation
                           & [37]Michigan Tech. U.

References

   1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
   2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2608/PerseidsAPOD_P-MHeden.jpg
   3. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
   4. https://www.clearskies.se/
   5. https://twanight.org/
   6. https://science.nasa.gov/solar-system/meteors-meteorites/perseids/
   7. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260812.html
   8. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260717.html
   9. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260803.html
  10. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap180908.html
  11. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap220818.html
  12. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260813.html
  13. https://science.nasa.gov/eclipses/future-eclipses/total-solar-eclipse-on-august-12-2026/
  14. https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1048378671224043&type=3
  15. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260814.html
  16. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
  17. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html
  18. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html
  19. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search
  20. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html
  21. https://apod.com/feed.rss
  22. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html
  23. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html
  24. https://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=260815
  25. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260816.html
  26. https://www.mtu.edu/physics/department/faculty/nemiroff/
  27. https://www.mtu.edu/physics
  28. https://www.astro.umd.edu/
  29. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  30. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html
  31. https://www.nasa.gov/general/accessibility/
  32. https://www.nasa.gov/privacy/
  33. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  34. https://www.nasa.gov/
  35. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  36. https://science.nasa.gov/learners
  37. http://www.mtu.edu/