130303 Milky Way Nucleus starscape
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ASTRO:
type=starscape view=Core Nucleus of Milky Way Galaxy dist=27 k ly IMAGE: location=EB Saline Bay BrtlCls=4 exposure=DSLR OSC: 1x25s (0.4m), f/3.5, ISO3200 EQUIPMENT: camera=Nikon D90 (stk) optics=NIKKOR 18-105mm DX kit zoom @ 18mm filter=(none) mount=simple fixed tripod guiding=(none) SOFTWARE: acquisition=(in-camera) processing=Photoshop, LrC |
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The Milky Way galaxy is home to our Solar System, with the name describing the galaxy's appearance from Earth: a hazy band of cloud-like light seen in the night sky formed from stars that cannot be individually distinguished by the naked (unaided) eye. It is estimated the Milky Way contains between 100 and 150 billion stars, encompassing almost all of the stars we see in our nighttime skies.
This image 'with constellation lines' and Deep Space Objects ("DSO's") (artificially added) brings forward the familiar asterism (star pattern) of the 'Tea Pot' in our nighttime sky. In another image 'with constellation lines & DSO', reference is also made to nearby DSO's where this area of the Milky Way is very densely packed with them. The nucleus core of the galaxy is known to be appx 27 thousand light years away from our solar system.
M8 Lagoon, M20 Trifid, M16 Eagle and M17 Omega nebulae are very popular targets among amateur AP imagers; being some of the most frequently photographed objects in the summertime sky. In particular, the Lagoon is a very bright nebula that is visible with the naked (unaided) eye, even in moderately light-polluted skies. It is one of only two (2) such nebulae that can be visually observed by 'open-eye' from the northern hemisphere. (The other is a wintertime object, the 'Orion nebula'.)
Ptolemy's Cluster is a direct throw-back to some of the earliest ages of recorded history when the Greek-Egyptian scholar, Claudius Ptolemy lived in Alexandria during the 2nd century AD, and recorded visualizing the cluster in his writings which we still have today. Ptolemy is thought to have been an early "polymath" (...an early-day Leonardo DaVinci, or Thomas Edison of sorts...) who is known for his significant contributions in many fields including astronomy, mathematics, and geography (among others).
This image 'with constellation lines' and Deep Space Objects ("DSO's") (artificially added) brings forward the familiar asterism (star pattern) of the 'Tea Pot' in our nighttime sky. In another image 'with constellation lines & DSO', reference is also made to nearby DSO's where this area of the Milky Way is very densely packed with them. The nucleus core of the galaxy is known to be appx 27 thousand light years away from our solar system.
M8 Lagoon, M20 Trifid, M16 Eagle and M17 Omega nebulae are very popular targets among amateur AP imagers; being some of the most frequently photographed objects in the summertime sky. In particular, the Lagoon is a very bright nebula that is visible with the naked (unaided) eye, even in moderately light-polluted skies. It is one of only two (2) such nebulae that can be visually observed by 'open-eye' from the northern hemisphere. (The other is a wintertime object, the 'Orion nebula'.)
Ptolemy's Cluster is a direct throw-back to some of the earliest ages of recorded history when the Greek-Egyptian scholar, Claudius Ptolemy lived in Alexandria during the 2nd century AD, and recorded visualizing the cluster in his writings which we still have today. Ptolemy is thought to have been an early "polymath" (...an early-day Leonardo DaVinci, or Thomas Edison of sorts...) who is known for his significant contributions in many fields including astronomy, mathematics, and geography (among others).