Astronomy Picture of the Day ·

The Geminid

The Astronomy Picture of the Day for December 16, 2022 is “The Geminid,” an image. The picture is copyrighted by its creator (Image Credit & Copyright: Jeff Dai ( TWAN )). The original explanation runs about 147 words.

The Geminid
Credit: Image Credit & Copyright: Jeff Dai ( TWAN ) Copyrighted Shown from science.nasa.gov. Not hosted by OpenOrbit.

From the explanation

“Returning from beyond the Moon , on December 11 the Orion spacecraft entered Earth’s atmosphere at almost 11 kilometers per second. That’s half the speed of the grain of dust that created this long fireball meteor when it entered the atmosphere on December 13, near the peak of the annual Geminid meteor shower .”

— APOD editors, December 16, 2022

Read the full explanation on science.nasa.gov

At a glance

Date
December 16, 2022
Type
Image
Credit
Credit: Image Credit & Copyright: Jeff Dai ( TWAN )
Copyright
Copyrighted by the credited creator. Ask the copyright holder before reusing it.
Explanation length
About 147 words

All of December 2022 → · 2022 by month → · Full archive since 1995 →

Topics in this entry

The MoonOrionMeteors

Topics are matched from words in the title and explanation.

On this day: December 16 in other years

On Amazon

Popular picks for space fans

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Electronics Amazon Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition 32GB Read astronomy and space-history books anywhere. View on Amazon → Electronics Bose QuietComfort Wireless Headphones Noise-cancelling headphones for documentaries and launch livestreams. View on Amazon →

Source

Copy taken Oct 28, 2026, 2:39 AM EDT. The image and explanation belong to their creators. OpenOrbit is not affiliated with or endorsed by NASA.