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                        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 16
   A dark landscape is back lit by a thunderstorm in the distance. A lone
   tree is visible near the center. Above the tree are two sky icons: the
      Andromeda Galaxy on the left and bright red sprites on the right.
          Please see the explanation for more detailed information.

                    Andromeda and Sprites over Australia
                      Image Credit & Copyright: JJ Rao

   Explanation: WhatCÇÖs happening over that tree? Two very different
   things. On the left is the Andromeda galaxy, an object that is older
   than humanity and will last billions of years into the future.
   Andromeda (M31) is similar in size and shape to our own Milky Way
   Galaxy. On the right is a red sprite, a type of lightning that lasts a
   fraction of a second and occurs above violent thunderstorms. Red
   sprites were verified as real atmospheric phenomena only about 35 years
   ago. The tree in the center is a boab, which may live for as long as a
   thousand years. Boab trees grow naturally in Australia and Africa and
   are known for being able to store large amounts of water: up to 100,000
   liters. The featured image was captured last month near Derby in
   Western Australia.

                       Tomorrow's picture: Soul Queen
     __________________________________________________________________

       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
                  NASA Web Privacy, Accessibility, Notices;
                      A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
                           NASA Science Activation
                             & Michigan Tech. U.

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