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.

                               2023 October 27
    [2]See Explanation. Clicking on the picture will download the highest
                        resolution version available.

                           Encke and the Tadpoles
                Image Credit & [3]Copyright: [4]Dan Bartlett

   Explanation: History's second known periodic comet is [5]Comet Encke
   (2P/Encke). As it swings through the inner [6]Solar System, Encke's
   orbit takes it from an aphelion, its greatest distance from the Sun,
   inside the orbit of Jupiter to a perihelion just inside the orbit of
   Mercury. Returning to its perihelion every 3.3 years, Encke has the
   shortest [7]period of the Solar System's major comets. Comet Encke is
   also associated with ([8]at least) two annual meteor showers on planet
   Earth, the [9]North and South Taurids. Both showers are active in late
   October and early November. Their two separate radiants lie near bright
   star Aldebaran in the head-strong constellation Taurus. A faint comet,
   Encke was captured in [10]this telescopic field of view imaged on the
   morning of August 24. Then, Encke's pretty greenish coma was close on
   the sky to the young, embedded star cluster and light-years long,
   [11]tadpole-shaped star-forming clouds in emission nebula IC 410.
   [12]Now near bright star Spica in Virgo Comet Encke passed its 2023
   perihelion only five days ago, on October 22.

                Tomorrow's picture: mostly a ghostly weekend
     __________________________________________________________________

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    Authors & editors: [24]Robert Nemiroff ([25]MTU) & [26]Jerry Bonnell
                                 ([27]UMCP)
          NASA Official: Phillip Newman [28]Specific rights apply.
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                A service of: [30]ASD at [31]NASA / [32]GSFC,
                         [33]NASA Science Activation
                           & [34]Michigan Tech. U.

References

   1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
   2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2310/2P_Encke_2023_08_24JuneLake_California_USA_DEBartlett.jpg
   3. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
   4. https://www.astrobin.com/users/h2ologg/
   5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comet_Encke
   6. https://science.nasa.gov/solar-system/comets/2p-encke/
   7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_numbered_comets
   8. https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2017A&A...605A..68S/abstract
   9. https://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/taurid-meteors-all-you-need-to-know/
  10. https://www.astrobin.com/jurom7/C/
  11. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap200618.html
  12. https://theskylive.com/encke-info
  13. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap231026.html
  14. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
  15. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html
  16. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html
  17. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search
  18. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html
  19. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod.rss
  20. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html
  21. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html
  22. http://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=231027
  23. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap231028.html
  24. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
  25. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
  26. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html
  27. http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  28. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  29. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html
  30. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  31. https://www.nasa.gov/
  32. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  33. https://science.nasa.gov/learners
  34. http://www.mtu.edu/