2024 July 21

King of Wings Hoodoo under the Milky Way
* Image Credit & Copyright: Wayne Pinkston (LightCrafter Photography)
https://waynepinkstonphoto.com/

Explanation:
This rock structure is not only surreal -- it's real. Perhaps the reason it's not more famous is that it is smaller than one might guess: the capstone rock overhangs only a few meters. Even so, the King of Wings outcrop, located in New Mexico, USA, is a fascinating example of an unusual type of rock structure called a hoodoo. Hoodoos may form when a layer of hard rock overlays a layer of eroding softer rock. Figuring out the details of incorporating this hoodoo into a night-sky photoshoot took over a year. Besides waiting for a suitably picturesque night behind a sky with few clouds, the foreground had to be artificially lit just right relative to the natural glow of the background. After much planning and waiting, the final shot, featured here, was taken in May 2016. Mimicking the horizontal bar, the background sky features the band of our Milky Way Galaxy stretching overhead.

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap240721.html

#space #galaxy #milkyway #astrophotography #photography #science #astronomy #nature#NASA

2024 May 29

Stairway to the Milky Way
* Image Credit & Copyright: Marcin Rosadziński
https://researchinpoland.org/news/polish-astrophotographer-selected-milky-way-photographer-of-the-year-2025/

Explanation:
What happens if you ascend this stairway to the Milky Way? Before answering that, let's understand the beautiful sky you will see. Most eye-catching is the grand arch of the Milky Way Galaxy, the band that is the central disk of our galaxy which is straight but distorted by the wide-angle nature of this composite image. Many stars well in front of the Milk Way will be visible, with the bright white star just below the stellar arch being Altair, and the bright blue star above it being Vega. The air glows green on the left, just above the yellow cloud deck. The featured image was taken last month on Portugal's Madeira Island in the North Atlantic Ocean. Oh, and what happens after you reach the top of these stairs and admire the amazing sky is, quite probably, that you then descend down the stairs on the other side.

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap240529.html

#space #galaxy #milkyway #astrophotography #photography #science #astronomy #nature#NASA

2024 July 5

Mount Etna Milky Way
* Image Credit & Copyright: Gianni Tumino
https://www.facebook.com/giovanni.tumino.58

Explanation:
A glow from the summit of Mount Etna, famous active stratovolcano of planet Earth, stands out along the horizon in this mountain and night skyscape. Bands of diffuse light from congeries of innumerable stars along the Milky Way galaxy stretch across the sky above. In silhouette, the Milky Way's massive dust clouds are clumped along the galactic plane. Also familiar to northern skygazers are bright stars Deneb, Vega, and Altair, the Summer Triangle straddling dark nebulae and luminous star clouds poised over the volcanic peak. The deep combined exposures reveal the light of active star forming regions along the Milky Way, echoing Etna's ruddy hue in the northern hemisphere summer's night.

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap240705.html

#space #galaxy #milkyway #astrophotography #photography #science #astronomy #nature#NASA

2024 July 29

Milky Way over Uluru
* Image Credit & Copyright: Max Inwood
https://www.instagram.com/max.nti/

Explanation:
What's happening above Uluru? A United Nations World Heritage Site, Uluru is an extraordinary 350-meter high mountain in central Australia that rises sharply from nearly flat surroundings. Composed of sandstone, Uluru has slowly formed over the past 300 million years as softer rock eroded away. The Uluru region has been a home to humans for over 22,000 years. Recorded last month, the starry sky above Uluru includes the central band of our Milky Way galaxy, complete with complex dark filaments of dust, bright red emission nebulas, and billions of stars.

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap240729.html

#space #galaxy #milkyway #astrophotography #photography #science #astronomy#NASA

2010 August 12

Perseid Prelude
* Credit & Copyright: Tamas Ladanyi (TWAN)
https://twanight.org/profile/tamas-ladanyi/

Explanation:
Each August, as planet Earth swings through dust trailing along the orbit of periodic comet Swift-Tuttle, skygazers can enjoy the Perseid Meteor Shower. The shower should build to its peak now, best seen from later tonight after moonset, until dawn tomorrow morning when Earth moves through the denser part of the wide dust trail. But shower meteors have been spotted for many days, like this bright Perseid streaking through skies near Lake Balaton, Hungary on August 8. In the foreground is the region's Church of St. Andrew ruin, with bright Jupiter dominating the sky to its right. Two galaxies lie in the background of the wide-angle, 3 frame panorama; our own Milky Way's luminous arc, and the faint smudge of the more distant Andromeda Galaxy just above the ruin's leftmost wall. If you watch for Perseid meteors tonight, be sure and check out the early evening sky show too, featuring bright planets and a young crescent Moon near the western horizon after sunset.

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap100812.html

#space #milkyway #astrophotography #photography #science #astronomy #nature#NASA

2024 August 5

Milky Way Over Tunisia
* Image Credit & Copyright: Makrem Larnaout
https://app.astrobin.com/u/Makrem_Larnaout#gallery

Explanation:
That's no moon. On the ground, that's the Lars Homestead in Tunisia. And that's not just any galaxy. That's the central band of our own Milky Way galaxy. Last, that's not just any meteor. It is a bright fireball likely from last year's Perseids meteor shower. The featured image composite combines consecutive exposures taken by the same camera from the same location. This year's Perseids peak during the coming weekend is expected to show the most meteors after the first quarter moon sets, near midnight. To best experience a meteor shower, you should have clear and dark skies, a comfortable seat, and patience.
https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/lars-homestead

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap240805.html

#space #milkyway #astrophotography #photography #science #astronomy #nature#NASA #starwars

The Celestial Emu proudly watches over Australia.

#DarkEmu#MilkyWay#Astronomy#Australia

The Night Guardians by Rositsa Dimitrova

Or silent witnesses to extinction?

#EasterIsland
#MilkyWay

The region of north Chad is filled with rock formations, shapes, and arches, offering an abundance of options for foreground elements to frame the dramatic night skies.

#astrophotography
#MilkyWay
#Chad

Evolution of Stars by Kavan Chay

Picture of Milky Way in Otago, NZ, taken with an astro-modified camera, which allows for easier capture of hydrogen-alpha-rich regions of the sky.

#astrophotography
#MilkyWay
#NZ

Tololo Lunar Eclipse Sky by Petr Horálek

On 14 March 2025, a total lunar eclipse occurred, especially visible over the Americas and the Pacific Ocean, observed from the NSF Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile. You can see how epic the sky was during totality, as the moon darkened enough for the majestic Milky Way, the faint belt of zodiacal light, and prominent airglow to stand out.

#astrophotography
#LunarEclipse
#MilkyWay
#observatory

Starlit Ocean by Xingyang Cai

Comet Tsuchinshan–Atlas (C/2023 A3) and Milky Way seen from McWay Falls in Big Sur.

#astrophotography
#MilkyWay
#comets

Cosmic Fire by Sergio Montúfar

That night, the volcano was incredibly active. Above, the Milky Way stretched diagonally across the sky. As the volcano erupted, the ash plume rose vertically, forming an acute angle of about 45 degrees with the galaxy’s diagonal path, creating a stunning visual contrast between Earth’s fury and the cosmos’ serenity.

#astrophotography
#volcano
#MilkyWay

Bottle Tree Paradise by Benjamin Barakat

*Alcoholics are refused entry.

#astrophotography
#Socotra
#BottleTrees
#MilkyWay

Blossom by Ethan Su

The Yushan alpine rhododendrons are finally in bloom once again on Taiwan’s 3,000-metre-high Hehuan mountain. A solar flare from active region AR3664 reached Earth that evening, intensifying the airglow and adding an otherworldly touch to the sky. Together, these rare natural events created a breathtaking scene – vivid blooms glowing softly beneath a star-filled sky.

#astrophotography
#MilkyWay
#rhododendrons
#BloomScrolling
#Taiwan

Winter Fairy Tale by Uroš Fink

A panorama of the winter Milky Way with reddish nebulae, stretching above Dobratsch. The sky was magnificent, with Jupiter and Mars shining brightly. In the foreground is a cabin.

#astrophotography
#MilkyWay

Double Milky Way Arch Over Matterhorn by Angel Fux

This image captures the rare double arch Milky Way, where both the winter Milky Way (with Orion rising) and the summer Milky Way (with the galactic centre) appear in the same night – a seamless transition between seasons. Taken at 3,200 metres. This is a time blend, preserving the real positions of both arches by combining frames taken hours apart, with the foreground captured at dawn for the best detail.

#MilkyWay