Pic of the day: Stunning Canary meteor shower
The annual Geminids meteor shower created a spectacular display in Spain's Canary Islands on Sunday and astrophotographer Juan Carlos Casado was on hand to capture the space weather event.
The composite image shows the snow-capped Teide volcano — Spain's tallest at 3,718 metres — in the foreground.
In the background is the constellation of Orion, and the star near the top of the volcano is Rigel.
The asteroids — 50 or so look, according to the photographer — look as if they are radiating from a central point, but are actually parallel to each other, NASA explained on its website.
This is due to perspective, the space agency explained.
The photo of the space weather event is made up of a series of exposures over more than 2 hours using a wide-angle lens.
Spain's Canary Islands are home to Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos (ORM), one of the top astronomy locations in the northern hemisphere.
The site is also home to the Gran Telescopio Canarias, largest single aperture telescope in the world, at 10.4m (410 inches).
Comments
See Also
The composite image shows the snow-capped Teide volcano — Spain's tallest at 3,718 metres — in the foreground.
In the background is the constellation of Orion, and the star near the top of the volcano is Rigel.
The asteroids — 50 or so look, according to the photographer — look as if they are radiating from a central point, but are actually parallel to each other, NASA explained on its website.
This is due to perspective, the space agency explained.
The photo of the space weather event is made up of a series of exposures over more than 2 hours using a wide-angle lens.
Spain's Canary Islands are home to Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos (ORM), one of the top astronomy locations in the northern hemisphere.
The site is also home to the Gran Telescopio Canarias, largest single aperture telescope in the world, at 10.4m (410 inches).
Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.
Please log in here to leave a comment.