                        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 22
   The sun is setting across a field in a clear sky. In the field are the
    famous stones of Stonehenge. The Sun peaks out from the center of the
   stone array. Please see the explanation for more detailed information.

                       Sunset Solstice over Stonehenge
            Image Credit & Copyright: English Heritage, Josh Dury

   Explanation: Yesterday the Sun reached its southernmost point in planet
   Earth's sky. Called a solstice, many cultures mark yesterday's date as
   a change of seasons -- from autumn to winter in Earth's Northern
   Hemisphere and from spring to summer in Earth's Southern Hemisphere.
   The featured image was taken just before the longest night of the 2025
   northern year at Stonehenge in United Kingdom. There, through stones
   precisely placed 4,500 years ago, a 4.5 billion year old large glowing
   orb is seen setting. Even given the precession of the Earth's
   rotational axis over the millennia, the Sun continues to set over
   Stonehenge in an astronomically significant way.

                    Tomorrow's picture: strange lightning
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
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