It was truly a busy sky. In one of the more spectacular photos yet submitted to Astronomy Picture of the Day [
http://www.phy.mtu.…], Don Cooke of Lyme, New Hampshire [
http://www.state.nh…] caught the Sun [
http://www.seds.org…], Moon [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…], Earth [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…], night sky [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…], Pleiades star cluster [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…], and Comet Hale-Bopp [
http://www.jpl.nasa…] all in one frame. The first leg of this "triple crown" exposure was of the Sun [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…], taken at 6:55 pm on April 10th 1997. Through a dark filter, the Sun [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…] appears as the bright dot on the lower right of the image. A second filtered exposure was then taken after the Sun had set, one hour and 40 minutes later - this time featuring the Moon [
http://nssdc.gsfc.n…]. The Moon appears as a crescent superimposed on an odd-shaped dark circle protruding into the left of the image. This shadow is actually a silhouette of a driveway reflector mounted on an aluminum rod used to block out the bright moon - so as to allow a third exposure, this time unfiltered, of the background night sky. And what a beautiful sky it is. Highlights include Comet Hale-Bopp [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…], on the right, and the Pleiades star cluster [
http://www.seds.org…], near the center. But what, you may wonder, is that bright light near the center of the picture? Don't worry if you can't guess: it's a porch light from a house across the river!
Explanation
It was truly a busy sky. In one of the more spectacular photos yet submitted to Astronomy Picture of the Day [
http://www.phy.mtu.…], Don Cooke of Lyme, New Hampshire [
http://www.state.nh…] caught the Sun [
http://www.seds.org…], Moon [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…], Earth [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…], night sky [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…], Pleiades star cluster [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…], and Comet Hale-Bopp [
http://www.jpl.nasa…] all in one frame. The first leg of this "triple crown" exposure was of the Sun [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…], taken at 6:55 pm on April 10th 1997. Through a dark filter, the Sun [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…] appears as the bright dot on the lower right of the image. A second filtered exposure was then taken after the Sun had set, one hour and 40 minutes later - this time featuring the Moon [
http://nssdc.gsfc.n…]. The Moon appears as a crescent superimposed on an odd-shaped dark circle protruding into the left of the image. This shadow is actually a silhouette of a driveway reflector mounted on an aluminum rod used to block out the bright moon - so as to allow a third exposure, this time unfiltered, of the background night sky. And what a beautiful sky it is. Highlights include Comet Hale-Bopp [
http://antwrp.gsfc.…], on the right, and the Pleiades star cluster [
http://www.seds.org…], near the center. But what, you may wonder, is that bright light near the center of the picture? Don't worry if you can't guess: it's a porch light from a house across the river!
Explanation
