NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day

Aug 17, 2023

A Cosmic Zoo in Cepheus

Sprawling emission nebulae IC 1396 and Sh2-129 mix glowing interstellar gas and dark dust clouds in this nearly 12 degree wide field of view toward the northern constellation Cepheus the King. Energized by its central star IC 1396 (left), is hundreds of light-years across and some 3,000 light-years distant. The nebula's intriguing dark shapes include a winding dark cloud popularly known as the Elephant's Trunk below and right of center. Tens of light-years long, it holds the raw material for star formation and is known to hide protostars within. Located a similar distance from planet Earth, the bright knots and swept back ridges of emission of Sh2-129 on the right suggest its popular name, the Flying Bat Nebula. Within the Flying Bat, the most recently recognized addition to this royal cosmic zoo is the faint bluish emission from Ou4, the Giant Squid Nebula. Near the lower right edge of the frame, the suggestive dark marking on the sky cataloged as Barnard 150 is also known as the dark Seahorse Nebula.

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html?

Flying orbs filmed spinning around plane 'shows proof of teleportation' and MH370 theory

Aug 13, 2023

Footage said to be from a satellite of bizarre orbs floating around a plane in the sky has conspiracy theorists convinced of what happened to missing flight MH370.

The Malaysia Airlines flight vanished in March 2014 after taking off from Kuala Lumpur airport bound for Beijing. It lost contact with air traffic control 40 minutes after take-off over the South China Sea and disappeared from radar. Extensive search and rescue missions were deployed but none of the 239 people on board were ever found, becoming one of the biggest mysteries of all time.

Now satellite video has people seemingly blaming an extra-terrestrial cause, with one person suggesting orbs flying around a plane is proof MH370 may have been teleported. In the "leaked" footage, a plane is seen coming into view by a huge cloud on the left, the Daily Star reports.

The plane, along with the three orbs, disappear in the sky. While some people said the video was fake and created using CGI and 3D animation, others disagreed and analysed the footage in detail. Adding credence to the theory is an article from 2014 from ABC News which reported "three large objects spotted near Malaysian airliner flight path".

It shared blurry images, taken by Chinese satellites, of three unidentified objects in the waters between Malaysia and Vietnam.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/weird-news/flying-orbs-filmed-spinning-around-30695336

Lahaina from the ISS

iss069e057179 (Aug. 12, 2023) — The island of Maui, Hawaii, the scene of deadly wildfires and the especially hard hit coastal town of Lahaina (at lower left), is pictured from the International Space Station as it orbited 259 miles above the Pacific Ocean.

https://images.nasa.gov/details/iss069e057179