What does this signify?

• by atanauli

  1. What do the horizontal and vertical bar signify?
  2. The bars almost seem mirror images of each other -- is this normal?

  Posted May 27, 2014 10:04 AM

• by JeanTate in response to atanauli's comment.

  My pet name for them is 'compass points' 😃

  They are 'diffraction spikes', and are common in SDSS images of bright stars. More about them in this recent OotD (Object of the Day) in the GZ forum: Diffraction Spikes, of the SDSS Kind

  Posted May 27, 2014 10:26 AM