                        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.

                              2025 December 20

                            A Solstice Sun Tattoo
                   Image Credit & Copyright: Marcella Pace

   Explanation: The word solstice is from the Latin for Sun and to pause
   or stand still. And in the days surrounding a solstice the Sun's annual
   north-south drift in planet Earth's sky does slow down, pause, and then
   reverse direction. So near the solstice the daily path of the Sun
   through the sky really doesn't change much. In fact, near the December
   solstice, the Sun's consistent, low arc through northern hemisphere
   skies, along with low surface temperatures, has left a noticeable
   imprint on this path to the mountain town of Peaio in northern Italy.
   The morning frost on the road has melted away only where the sunlight
   was able to reach the ground. But it remains in the areas persistently
   shadowed by the fence, tattooing in frost an image of the fence on the
   asphalt surface.

               Tomorrow's picture: solstice on a tilted planet
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
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                           NASA Science Activation
                             & Michigan Tech. U.

