APOD: 2026 September 19 – A Zodiacal Night

APOD

Astronomy Picture of the Day

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.

Explanation: Also known as the false dawn, a luminous band of zodiacal light is captured in this dark night skyscape. The serene view was recorded just before the beginning of astronomical twilight during September's star party at the remote Hanle Dark Sky Reserve, Ladakh, India, planet Earth. At about 4,500 meters altitude, the dark sky reserve presents a haven for hardy stargazing and astrophotography enthusiasts. While meteors streak through the night, bright planet Jupiter appears immersed in the faint zodiacal glow near the eastern horizon. Follow the zodiacal band toward the zenith to find open star cluster M44 and a yellowish tinged planet Mars near the center of the frame. In fact, serendipitous detections of interplanetary dust by NASA's Juno spacecraft suggest Mars itself is the source of dust that back scatters sunlight and creates zodiacal light in planet Earth's night.APOD's main NASA site is moving: From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apodTomorrow's picture: only sunny days

Full text from nasa.gov (public domain).