Andreas Brunthaler   Postdoc in the Millimeter & Submillimeter Astronomy Group at the   Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie   Address:   Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie   Auf dem Hügel 69   53121 Bonn   Germany

Research Interests:

• Proper motions of Local Group galaxies.
• The structure of the Milky Way
• The Galactic Center: Sgr A*
• Supernova 2008iz in M82
• Extragalactic H2O Masers: Local Group, 3C 403, MG J0414+0534
• Circular Polarization in AGN: M81
• Jets in AGN: The case of III Zw 2
• VLBI Astrometry and Phase-referencing.

Astronomy Picture of the Day
Meteor between the Clouds
Credit & Copyright: Victor van Wulfen

Explanation: This bright meteor streaked through dark night skies over Sutherland, South Africa on November 15. Potentially part of the annual Leonid meteor shower, its sudden, brilliant appearance, likened to a camera's flash, was captured by chance as it passed between two clouds. Of course, the two clouds are also visible to the eye in dark southern skies - the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds - satellite galaxies of our own Milky Way. This year's Leonid meteor shower peaked on November 17 as the Earth passed through the stream of dust from periodic comet Tempel-Tuttle.