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.

                              2024 December 21
    [2]See Explanation. Clicking on the picture will download the highest
                        resolution version available.

                              A Year in Sunsets
                  Image Credit & [3]Copyright: [4]Wael Omar

   Explanation: [5]A year in sunsets, from April 2023 to March 2024, track
   along the western horizon in these stacked panoramic views. The
   [6]well-planed sequence is constructed of images recorded near the 21st
   day of the indicated month from the same location overlooking Cairo,
   Egypt. But for any location [7]on planet Earth the yearly extreme
   northern (picture right) and southern limits of the setting Sun [8]mark
   the solstice days. The word solstice is from Latin for "Sun" and "stand
   still". On the solstice date the seasonal drift of the Sun's daily path
   through the sky appears to pause and reverse direction in its [9]annual
   celestial journey. Of course the Sun reaches a stand still on today's
   date. The [10]21 December 2024 solstice at 09:21 UTC is the moment of
   the Sun's southernmost declination, the start of astronomical winter
   [11]in the north and summer [12]in the south.

                    Tomorrow's picture: just local fluff
     __________________________________________________________________

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    Authors & editors: [24]Robert Nemiroff ([25]MTU) & [26]Jerry Bonnell
                                 ([27]UMCP)
          NASA Official: Amber Straughn [28]Specific rights apply.
              [29]NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices
                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/2412/SunsetYearOmar.jpg
   3. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
   4. https://www.instagram.com/waelomar_astrophotography/
   5. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap220105.html
   6. https://www.instagram.com/waelomar_astrophotography/p/C4ygIw1rIpo/
   7. https://science.nasa.gov/solar-system/skywatching/night-sky-network/tropical-solstice-shadows/
   8. https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/blogs/eokids/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2019/04/16_SunSeasons-508.pdf
   9. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap190621.html
  10. https://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/everything-you-need-to-know-december-solstice/
  11. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap221221.html
  12. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap231223.html
  13. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap241220.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=241221
  23. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap241222.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/