Astronomy Picture of the Day

Explanation: Where on the sky is the Pelican Nebula? APOD features many objects on the night sky, but usually does not have the resources to show exactly where on the night sky each objects lies. Today, thanks to inventive digital manipulations of Filipe Alves, it is possible to show you exactly where on the sky the photogenic Pelican Nebula can be found. Clicking on the above arrow will cause many browsers to download and play a spectacular movie that zooms from the perspective of an unaided human eye to that of a powerful telescope. The observatory dome visible on the right is part of Calar Alto Observatory in southern Spain. The image zooms into the constellation of Cygnus, passes the dust structure in the Pelican head housing unborn stars. Alternatively, the above movie is also available here.