WyStarwatcher wrote:Hi Folks,
I believe the "water tower" referred to in the description is actually the upper tube assembly and the trusses of a Dobsonian-mounted reflector telescope.
Love APOD - been watching it for several years now. Thanks for your efforts!
D'oh! Maybe I don't win anything.
But if it's a scope, what are the odds it's even vertical to begin with?
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2008 December 16: I checked the APOD again. The reference to the object in question has been removed. It was fun while it lasted.
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But stop looking at what's on the ground and look what's in the sky!
The Big Dipper is easy to find, and from there it's easy to find Leo. Leo is in the zodiacal light, which makes sense for a constellation of the zodiac. But wait - doesn't Leo's toe look a little bright to you?
Let's look at the larger image.
I'm thinking this photo might have been taken during the Saturn-sigma Leonis conjunction this November 2.
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Saturn has been hanging out around Leo a lot the past couple of years. Just look at these eight APODs:
http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apo ... leo+planet
This one is an animation that shows Saturn doing three retrograde loops near Leo the past three years:
http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070407.html