Ecliptic Light Parade

Two days ago, August 30, 2024, Jupiter, Mars, and the Moon traced the path of the ecliptic in the early morning sky. The sideways “V” of Taurus can be seen in the upper right of the image and the the stellar pair, Castor and Pollux of Gemini grace the lower left, just above the Moon (Castor is the upper star of the bright pair).

The ecliptic is the orbital plane of Earth around the Sun, and the other planets and the Moon also move through the sky close to this plane. The path of the ecliptic through the stellar background is revealed in this image by imagining a line through Jupiter, Mars, and the Moon. It was a heavenly light show well worth the early arising to enjoy.

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