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Credit & Copyright: Juned Patel
Explanation:
No, the Moon is not a bow, and no, it did not shoot out a plane like an arrow.
What is pictured is a chance superposition.
The plane's
contrail
would normally appear white,
but the large volume of air toward the rising Sun preferentially knocked away blue
light, not only making the
sky blue,
but giving the reflected trail a bright
red hue.
Far in the distance, well behind
the plane, the
crescent Moon also appears slightly reddened.
Captured early last month from
Bolton,
UK,
the featured image was taken so soon after sunrise that the plane
was sunlit from below, as was its contrail.
Within minutes, unfortunately, the impromptu sky
show
ended.
The plane moved out of sight.
The Moon
kept rising but became harder to see through a brightening sky.
And the
contrail gradually dispersed.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: Moon
Publications with words: Moon
See also:
- APOD: 2025 June 28 B Lunar Farside
- APOD: 2025 June 20 B Major Lunar Standstill 2024 2025
- APOD: 2025 June 18 B Space Station Silhouette on the Moon
- APOD: 2025 April 22 B Terminator Moon: A Moonscape of Shadows
- Moon Near the Edge
- APOD: 2025 April 8 B Moon Visits Sister Stars
- APOD: 2025 April 6 B Moonquakes Surprisingly Common