| | August 7 Milky Way's Dark Rift | | | |
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| Dark Rift in the Milky Way | | Standing under a dark sky? Look up! In August, you’ll notice a long, dark lane dividing the bright Milky Way. This Dark Rift is a place where new stars are forming. | | | Next 2 mornings: Moon in Gemini | | The moon has now waned to a slim crescent phase. It's near the stars Castor and Pollux – the legendary Gemini "twins" – on Wednesday and Thursday mornings. | | | Speck from an asteroid | | Viewed under a microscope, it resembles a human hair. But it's a speck of cosmic dust – a tiny sample from an asteroid, brought back to Earth by a Japanese space mission. | | | | | | |
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| | | Next 2 mornings: Moon in Gemini | Castor and Pollux are frequently called "twin" stars. But they don't look alike. Pollux is brighter and more golden in color. | | | | |
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| | Speck from an asteroid | This is an extremely precious speck of extraterrestrial dust, from the Itokawa asteroid. | | |