                        Astronomy Picture of the Day

    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 10
     A starfield appears featuring a comet with a long tail that extends
    from the lower right to the upper left. To the left of the comet is a
    bright star, and above the comet and to the right is a red and white
      nebula. Please see the explanation for more detailed information.

                        Comet R3 PanSTARRS and Orion
                 Image Credit & Copyright: Luc Perrot (TWAN)

   Explanation: Orion never had a sword like this. As Comet C/2025 R3
   (PanSTARRS) heads out of the inner Solar System, it is putting on quite
   a show for long exposure cameras. Currently seen toward the
   constellation of Orion the Hunter, the distant Orion Nebula is visible
   on the upper right. Comet R3 PanSTARRS is now showing two distinct
   tails: a short dust tail pointing toward the top of the image and a
   long and wavy ion tail trailing off toward the upper left. The ion tail
   points away from the Sun and glows blue from excited carbon monoxide.
   Large particles in the dust tail somewhat resist the radiation pressure
   that push them away from the Sun and so retain a bit of the comet's
   orbit. The dust tail shines by reflected sunlight. The featured image
   was taken a few days ago from France's Reunion Island in the southern
   Indian Ocean.

                 Growing Gallery: Comet R3 PanSTARRS in 2026
                     Tomorrow's picture: Canary moonset
     __________________________________________________________________

       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
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                             & Michigan Tech. U.

