Before the launch of the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) in 1995, astronomers had never seen anything like this. Behold, a #solar #storm passing directly in front of the #Pleiades:

SOHO recorded this rare conjunction on May 21st. An erupting filament of magnetism near the sun's north pole propelled the #CME into space just as the #SevenSisters were passing by. #Electra, #Taygete, #Maia, #Celaeno, #Alcyone, #Sterope, and #Merope spent nearly three hours shining through the translucent solar storm.

When SOHO left Earth almost 30 years ago, it carried the first realtime #coronagraph into #space. Coronagraphs are devices that create an #artificial #eclipse, blocking the glare of the #sun to reveal nearby #stars, #planets, and #comets. No telescope on Earth could see something as faint as the Pleiades only a few degrees from the sun, but SOHO does it all the time.
https://spaceweather.com/

#Pleiades: The #SevenSisters #Star #Cluster

#Astronomy #Picture of the Day

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap221205.html

#APOD

#SevenSisters versus #California

#Astronomy #Picture of the Day

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap220405.html

#APOD

From Pleiades to Hyades
Credit & Copyright : Rogelio Bernal Andreo

Explanation: This cosmic vista stretches almost 20 degrees across the gentle constellation Taurus. It begins at the Pleiades and ends at the Hyades, two of the best known star clusters in planet Earth's sky. At left, the lovely Pleiades star cluster is about 400 light-years away. In a familiar celestial scene, the cluster stars shine through dusty clouds that scatter blue starlight. At right, the V-shaped Hyades cluster looks more spread out compared to the compact Pleiades and lies much closer, 150 light-years distant. Of course, the Hyades cluster stars seem anchored by bright Aldebaran, a red giant star with a yellowish appearance. But Aldebaran actually lies only 65 light-years away, by chance along the line of sight to the Hyades cluster. Faint dust clouds found near the edge of the Taurus Molecular Cloud are also evident throughout the remarkable 12 panel mosaic. The wide field of view includes the youthful star T Tauri and Hind's variable nebula about four degrees left of Aldebaran on the sky.

The Pleiades are 444.2 lightyears far from earth... that is 136.19 parsec. [+]

Another source tells that the cluster is between 434 and 446 light years from Earth. [+]

#Pleiades #stars #cluster #SevenSisters #M45

#Pleiades: The #SevenSisters #StarCluster

#Astronomy #Picture of the Day

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap211124.html

#APOD