TL;DR
Prime made for students and young adults
- Fast, free delivery for dorm and study essentials
- Prime Video and Amazon Music included
- Member-only deals
NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day for October 15, 2026, features an image of the Milky Way over Manhattan by astrophotographers Jason Kurth and Ty Buckley. NASA says a filter that captures near-infrared light helped limit glare from many city lights, while stars remain visible in that part of the spectrum.
NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD) for October 15, 2026, features the Milky Way above Manhattan, an image credited to astrophotographers Jason Kurth and Ty Buckley. The accompanying explanation says the photograph was taken through a filter that blocks most visible light and captures near-infrared wavelengths, reducing the effect of some urban lighting while still recording stars.
NASA describes the image as a view of the galaxy’s band over New York City, where bright city lights normally outshine stars. The APOD explanation says the filter blocks most visible light and instead records near-infrared light, which has lower energy than visible light. It does not identify the specific camera, filter model, exposure settings or date and location of the photograph.
The explanation says the method suppresses much of the light pollution from fluorescent and LED bulbs, which do not shine brightly in the near-infrared in the way captured by the image. It adds that older incandescent bulbs and some neon lights can remain bright in that wavelength range. Stars also emit near-infrared light, allowing them to appear in the resulting image.
The image credit names Jason Kurth and Ty Buckley. NASA lists Cecilia Chirenti, Robert Nemiroff, Jerry Bonnell and Keighley Rockcliffe as authors and editors of the APOD entry. The page is provided through NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day service, with NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center and other listed partners.
How Near-Infrared Reveals City Stars
The image offers a practical example of how changing the wavelengths an instrument records can make a familiar subject appear differently. In this case, near-infrared imaging reduces the contribution from many modern city lights, while stars remain detectable in the same part of the spectrum. It does not mean that Manhattan’s night sky is free of light pollution; rather, the filter changes which light reaches the image.
That distinction matters for readers because the photograph is not evidence that the Milky Way is ordinarily easy to see over the city with the unaided eye. NASA’s explanation frames the technique as a way to limit particular sources of urban glare. The image also illustrates that astronomy can use parts of the electromagnetic spectrum beyond visible light to study the sky, though the APOD entry does not present new research findings or measurements of New York’s light pollution.
NASA’s caption connects the scene to a broader point: people share the same sky, even when urban conditions make some celestial features difficult to observe. The image’s immediate value is visual and educational, showing how an imaging choice can reveal a view that visible-light city photography would largely miss.
near-infrared astrophotography filter
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
The APOD Image and Its Method
NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day publishes a different space-related image or photograph each day, accompanied by an explanation written by a professional astronomer, according to the service description on the October 15 page. The featured item is titled “The Milky Way over Manhattan” and is dated October 15, 2026. NASA’s page credits the image to Kurth and Buckley and lists the APOD editors and participating organizations.
The caption’s central technical detail is the use of a filter that blocks most visible wavelengths and records near-infrared light. NASA explains that different artificial light sources behave differently in this range: fluorescent and LED bulbs are not bright in the recorded near-infrared, while incandescent bulbs and some neon lights can still contribute. Because stars also shine in near-infrared, the filter can reduce some background lighting without eliminating the stellar signal.
The APOD entry’s next-day listing is titled “Chasing the ISS.” The page does not provide further details about that upcoming image, and it does not say whether the Manhattan photograph is part of a larger project or a one-off capture.
Details Behind the Manhattan Capture
The APOD page does not specify when or exactly where the photograph was taken, what equipment was used, how long the exposure lasted or how the image was processed. It also does not quantify how much city light the filter removed or identify the particular lighting sources in the scene. Those details cannot be inferred from the caption alone.
NASA’s explanation describes which types of lighting are bright or dim in the near-infrared range, but it does not claim that the technique blocks all urban light pollution. Incandescent and some neon lights can still be bright in that range, according to the page. The source also does not state whether the Milky Way depicted would be visible to the naked eye from the same location under ordinary visible-light conditions.
NASA’s Next Daily Image
The APOD page lists “Chasing the ISS” as the picture for October 16, 2026. NASA’s daily format indicates that another image and explanation are scheduled for the following day, but the October 15 entry does not supply further information about its subject or photographic method. No additional project updates or follow-up findings about the Manhattan image are included in the source material.
Key Questions
What does NASA’s October 15 APOD show?
It features the Milky Way above Manhattan, in an image credited to Jason Kurth and Ty Buckley.
How was the Milky Way captured over the city?
NASA’s caption says the image used a filter that blocks most visible light and captures near-infrared wavelengths. The page does not give camera or exposure details.
Does the image show that Manhattan’s light pollution is gone?
No. NASA says the filter limits the effect of some city lighting, not all of it. The caption notes that incandescent bulbs and some neon lights can remain bright in near-infrared.
Can the Milky Way be seen unaided from the same spot?
The APOD entry does not say. It describes a filtered photograph, so it should not be taken as evidence that the Milky Way is ordinarily visible to the naked eye over Manhattan.
What image is listed for the next day?
NASA lists “Chasing the ISS” for October 16, 2026, but the October 15 page provides no further description.
Source: primary
Halloween Picks
halloween
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
