Astronomy Picture of the Day

Explanation: On August 1st, a time exposure created this surreal view that looks up into the early morning sky over southern Quebec. Only the light from a nearly Full Moon brightens the sky and highlights the dome of the 1.6 metre telescope at Mont-Megantic Observatory. Shadowy figures on the catwalk are astronomers who have interrupted their work to glimpse the International Space Station (ISS) streaking overhead. The brightest "star" in the moonlit sky, the ISS was easy to spot moving through a background of stars in the high-flying constellation Pegasus.