Explanation:
This meteor streaking toward the horizon through the early morning sky
of January 4th is from the annual
Quadrantid meteor shower.
Aligned with the shower's radiant point
high in the north (off the top of the view), the meteor trail passes
to the right of bright bluish star Beta
Scorpii.
Remarkably, near the top of the trail is a small spot, the fuzzy
greenish glow of
a comet.
Discovered in July of 2007,
Comet Lulin
(C/2007 N3), is too faint now to
be easily seen by the unaided eye, but will
likely
brighten to become visible to skygazers by late February.
The well-timed
skyscape featuring both comet and meteor is particularly
appropriate as cometary bodies are known to be the
origins of planet Earth's
annual
meteor showers.
digg_url = 'http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap090105.html'; digg_skin = 'compact';
