The sky on
your birthday.
A Close-Up of the Lagoon's Hourglass
The Hourglass Nebula is located within the central part of the Lagoon Nebula. This region is a site of recent star formation. Dark lanes of dust permeate the red-glowing hydrogen gas, obscuring parts of the cloud. From our perspective, these dust lanes create a glowing shape that resembles an hourglass. A bright young blue star from the open cluster NGC 6530 is visible in the upper right of this Hubble Space Telescope image.
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Released on your day
Space pictures released on your month and day in other years, or a few days either side. Each one is sharp enough to print as a poster.
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Released on 21 August 2023 Webb captures detailed beauty of Ring Nebula (NIRCam image) See it as a poster -
Released on 21 August 2023 Webb captures detailed beauty of Ring Nebula (NIRCam image - cropped) See it as a poster -
Released on 21 August 2023 Webb captures detailed beauty of Ring Nebula (MIRI image - cropped) See it as a poster -
Released on 21 August 2023 Hubble’s view of the Ring Nebula (2013 image - cropped) See it as a poster -
Released on 21 August 2017 2017 Total Solar Eclipse See it as a poster
In tropical astrology, 21 AUG 1996 falls under Leo (♌). The sign's window runs from 07-23 through 08-22. Leo is anchored by Regulus, the heart of the Lion, twenty-four parsecs from Earth. The Sun was crossing this region of the sky on 21 AUG 1996.
Questions about August 21, 1996
What space photo was released on August 21, 1996?
NASA's Astronomy Picture of the Day for August 21, 1996 was "A Close-Up of the Lagoon's Hourglass". It's the card at the top of this page.
What was the Moon's phase on August 21, 1996?
A first quarter moon, about 46% lit.
What day of the week was August 21, 1996?
August 21, 1996 was a Wednesday, day 234 of the 366 days in 1996.
Is it free?
Yes. Seeing, sharing and downloading the card is free, and there's no account to make.