APOD: 2026 August 3 – Vaporizing Meteor Photobombs the Lacerta Nebula
APOD Science APOD APOD: 2026 August 3 –… Today’s APOD Archive Submissions Index Search Calendar RSS Education About Discuss APOD 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. Vaporizing Meteor Photobombs the Lacerta Nebula Explanation: What’s happening to this meteor? This bright meteor streak appeared and disappeared quickly during a long exposure of the Great Lacerta Nebula , seen faintly in red toward the center of the image. The meteoroid , likely a small pebble, creates its glow partly by heating and exciting surrounding air in Earth’s atmosphere , but itself vaporizes and leaves wind-blown gas and dust with colors that give clues to its composition. The featured image was captured last month from Death Valley Observatories in Nevada , USA . Thi...
