Astronomy Picture of the Day——黎明时分的阿特拉斯火箭
Atlas at Dawn
Image Credit & Copyright: Michael Seeley
Explanation: This single, 251-second long exposure follows the early flight of an Atlas V rocket on August 8, streaking eastward toward the dawn from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, planet Earth. The launch of the United Launch Alliance rocket was at 6:13am local time. Sunrise was not until 6:48am, but the rocket's downrange plume at altitude is brightly lit by the Sun still just below the eastern horizon. Waters of the Indian River Lagoon in Palm Shores, Forida reflect subtle colors and warming glow of the otherwise calm, predawn sky. The mighty Atlas rocket carried a military communications satellite into Earth orbit. Of course, this weekend the streaks you see in clear skies before the dawn could be Perseid Meteors.
黎明时分的阿特拉斯火箭
这幅曝光时长为251秒的单张图像是在8月8日阿特拉斯五号火箭飞行早期拍摄的，这枚火箭从卡纳维拉尔角空军基地发射升空，朝着黎明方向行进。联合发射联盟火箭于当地时间上午6时13分发射升空。而太阳直到上午6时48分才升起，但高空中顺着火箭飞行方向飘散的羽流被仍在东方地平线以下的太阳所照亮。在佛罗里达州棕榈海岸的印度河泻湖水域，反射出微妙的色彩，黎明前的宁静天空也散发出温暖的辉光。强大的阿特拉斯火箭将一颗军用通信卫星送入地球轨道。但是，你在本周末黎明前的晴朗天空中看到的余迹可能不是火箭，而是英仙座流星。
参考文献：
https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1908/5D4_5485seeley.jpg
近期文章：
Astronomy Picture of the Day——蒂尔岭上的好奇号