Kenya Morning Moon, Planets, and Taurid

As seen on Astronomy Picture of the Day, on the morning of 2015 Nov 8, the Moon joined the parade of planets Venus, Jupiter, and Mars in the morning sky. Captured here from Amboseli National Park, Kenya, a bright Taurid meteor also streaks through the scene. In fact November’s Taurid meteor showers displayed a high proportion of bright fireballs in 2015. Apparently streaming from radiants in Taurus, the meteors are caused by our fair planet’s annual passage through debris from Comet 2P/Encke. The comet’s dust grains are catching up with Earth’s atmosphere at a relatively low speed of about 27 kilometers per second.

The image was made during the TWAN photographer workshop for Nikon in Kenya, Click the second photo to see the group photo under Kilimanjaro sky.