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. 2026 May 5 [2]A starry sky is seen above a snowy volcano peak. The sky is bright with many stars and red nebula. In the foreground is dark soil and green evergreen trees. Please see the explanation for more detailed information. Orion over Mount Teide Image Credit & Copyright: [3]Marcin Rosadziński Explanation: Orion is rarely seen like this. To achieve this [4]majestic vista, you need a camera capable of taking such [5]long duration exposures that [6]faint features in the night sky become revealed. Iconic nebulas that appear include the [7]Orion Nebula, the [8]Flame Nebula, and [9]Barnard's Loop. For contrast, it also helps to have a [10]volcano on the foreground, in this case the [11]Teide volcano on [12]Tenerife on the [13]Canary Islands of [14]Spain. But if you want your [15]Teide volcano snow-covered, you also need good timing -- because that only happens, typically, for a few days each year. Good timing also includes [16]waiting for [17]Orion to appear just [18]behind Teide, which occurred late last year after sunset. The [19]featured image is the result of a series of images taken consecutively with the same camera from the same location. Sky Surprise: [20]What picture did APOD feature on your birthday? (after 1995) Tomorrow's picture: backwards planets __________________________________________________________________ [21]< | [22]Archive | [23]Submissions | [24]Index | [25]Search | [26]Calendar | [27]RSS | [28]Education | [29]About APOD | [30]Discuss | [31]> __________________________________________________________________ Authors & editors: [32]Robert Nemiroff ([33]MTU) & [34]Jerry Bonnell ([35]UMCP) NASA Official: Amber Straughn [36]Specific rights apply. [37]NASA Web Privacy, [38]Accessibility, [39]Notices; A service of: [40]ASD at [41]NASA / [42]GSFC, [43]NASA Science Activation & [44]Michigan Tech. U. References 1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html 2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2605/OrionTeide_Rosadzinski_4247.jpg 3. https://www.instagram.com/krakow_astrophotography/ 4. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap090120.html 5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long-exposure_photography 6. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap240131.html 7. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250420.html 8. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250902.html 9. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap090224.html 10. https://science.nasa.gov/science-org-term/eo-topics-natural-events-volcanoes/ 11. https://youtu.be/aVtyMNpCkWY 12. https://youtu.be/gi-V3xD7oII 13. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canary_Islands 14. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spain 15. https://therealtenerife.com/posts/how-many-months-of-the-year-can-you-find-snow-on-mount-teide/ 16. https://static.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/cat-waiting-window-69.jpg 17. https://science.nasa.gov/asset/hubble/orion-constellation/ 18. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap231203.html 19. https://www.instagram.com/p/DXU1jyUCKfl/ 20. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html 21. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260504.html 22. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html 23. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html 24. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html 25. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search 26. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html 27. https://apod.com/feed.rss 28. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html 29. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html 30. https://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=260505 31. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260506.html 32. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html 33. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/ 34. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html 35. http://www.astro.umd.edu/ 36. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply 37. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html 38. https://www.nasa.gov/general/accessibility/ 39. https://www.nasa.gov/privacy/ 40. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/ 41. https://www.nasa.gov/ 42. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/ 43. https://science.nasa.gov/learners 44. http://www.mtu.edu/