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.

                                2025 April 8
   [2]A dark night sky is shown with clouds on the left. Just above center
     in blue is the Pleiades star cluster. Just below the Pleiades is a
      crescent moon, but bright enough so that you can see not only the
    brightly lit crescent but, more faintly, the rest of the Moon. Please
             see the explanation for more detailed information.

                          Moon Visits Sister Stars
                       Image Credit: [3]Cayetana Saiz

   Explanation: Sometimes, the Moon visits the Pleiades. Technically, this
   means that the orbit of [4]our Moon takes it directly in front of the
   famous [5]Pleiades star cluster, which is far in the distance. The
   technical term for the event is an [6]occultation, and the Moon is
   famous for its rare occultations [7]of [8]all [9]planets and several
   well-known [10]bright stars. The Moon's tilted and [11]precessing orbit
   makes its occultations of the [12]Seven Sisters star cluster bunchy,
   with the current epoch [13]starting in 2023 continuing monthly until
   2029. After that, though, the next occultation [14]won't occur until
   2042. Taken from [15]Cantabria, [16]Spain on April 1, the [17]featured
   image is a composite where previous exposures of the Pleiades from the
   same camera and location were digitally added to the last image to
   bring up the star cluster's [18]iconic blue glow.

              Jigsaw Challenge: [19]Astronomy Puzzle of the Day
                       Tomorrow's picture: cosmic jets
     __________________________________________________________________

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     __________________________________________________________________

    Authors & editors: [31]Robert Nemiroff ([32]MTU) & [33]Jerry Bonnell
                                 ([34]UMCP)
          NASA Official: Amber Straughn [35]Specific rights apply.
            [36]NASA Web Privacy, [37]Accessibility, [38]Notices;
                A service of: [39]ASD at [40]NASA / [41]GSFC,
                         [42]NASA Science Activation
                           & [43]Michigan Tech. U.

References

   1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
   2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2504/PleiadesMoon_Saiz_6000.jpg
   3. https://www.instagram.com/caye.wildvisuals/
   4. https://science.nasa.gov/moon/
   5. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap241209.html
   6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occultation
   7. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap200621.html
   8. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap190409.html
   9. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250115.html
  10. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap170505.html
  11. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunar_precession
  12. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap240929.html
  13. https://skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-news/observing-news/watch-the-moon-occult-the-pleiades-spica-too/
  14. https://www.reddit.com/media?url=https://preview.redd.it/lonely-sad-cat-v0-gbl9nva813ne1.jpeg?width=640&crop=smart&auto=webp&s=79d816671a1bb09699263c4c3e83ba9f5df9f133
  15. https://youtu.be/LH3qwMH22bo
  16. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spain
  17. https://www.instagram.com/p/DH_ptItogQl/
  18. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap210406.html
  19. https://www.scigames.org/apps/webjigsaw2/index.php
  20. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250407.html
  21. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
  22. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html
  23. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html
  24. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search
  25. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html
  26. https://apod.com/feed.rss
  27. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html
  28. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html
  29. https://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=250408
  30. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250409.html
  31. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
  32. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
  33. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html
  34. http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  35. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  36. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html
  37. https://www.nasa.gov/general/accessibility/
  38. https://www.nasa.gov/privacy/
  39. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  40. https://www.nasa.gov/
  41. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  42. https://science.nasa.gov/learners
  43. http://www.mtu.edu/