National Geographic's best space pics of 2010

[n2doc]

Annular Eclipse Over Bangkok
Photograph by Chaiwat Subprasom, Reuters

An airplane is silhouetted against the first solar eclipse of the decade, seen over Bangkok, Thailand, in January. The annular eclipse blotted out 57 to 80 percent of the sun over Thailand, depending on the province, Sakshin Bunthawin of Songkla University told the Phuket Gazette.

This shot, chosen as one of our editors' picks for the year's best space pictures, was originally published in the gallery "Eclipse Photos: 'Ring of Fire' Shines Over Africa, Asia."
Published November 30, 2010


Mars and a Moonbow
Photograph by Wally Pacholka, TWAN

Mars shines like a bright red star over a "moonbow" in fog surrounding Hawaii's Haleakala volcano in January. This photograph, originally published in "Space Photos This Week: Shuttle Launch, Moonbow," was taken as Mars was about to make its closest pass by Earth for 2010.

The lunar rainbow was created as moonlight passed through tiny droplets of water in the fog.

Published November 30, 2010


Aurora Australis From Space
Photograph courtesy Johnson Space Center/NASA

Even for astronauts, this May image was a rare sight indeed: an aurora hovering over the southern Indian Ocean.

Auroras occur when charged particles from the sun collide with Earth's upper atmosphere, causing atoms of oxygen and nitrogen to gain energy and then release it in the form of light.

More
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/11/photogalleries/101130-best-space-pictures-2010/

[BlueJazz]

1. Wow!... Absolutely Gorgeous...Thanks for posting.

[bananas]

2. link needs the "/" at the end

Long-standing DU software bug puts a space in front of the last "/"
This link works: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/11/photogalleries/101130-best-space-pictures-2010/index.html