Mercury and Jupiter in Conjunction (March 27, 2023)

Mercury (on the right) and Jupiter in a close conjunction just 1.3° apart but very low in the west in the evening twilight, on March 27, 2023. Taken from home in southern Alberta. Mercury was ascending higher each night, beginning its best evening apparition for the year, while Jupiter was dropping out of sight ending its months-long appearance. Jupiter was magnitude -2 this night, while Mercury was -1.4. This is a single 0.3-second exposure with the Canon RF70-200mm lens at 200mm and f/5.6 on the Canon R5 at ISO 100, untracked. A mild Soft Focus effect added with Nik Collection Color EFX.

Thin Moon and Jupiter Setting (March 22, 2023)

The thin one-day-old crescent Moon just above Jupiter as both set on the evening of March 22, 2023. The Earthshine glow is obvious on the dark side of the Moon. The age of the Moon was about 31.5 hours this night at this time and longitude. This is a single 1.6-second untracked shot with the Canon RF100-400mm lens at 270mm and f/8 (wide open at this focal length), on the Canon Ra at ISO 3200 to keep the exposure time short and with the Ra's red sensitivity enhancing the twilight colours. Topaz DeNoise AI applied to smooth the high ISO noise. A mild Orton glow added with Luminar Neo.

Thin Moon with Venus and Saturn Conjunction (Landscape)

Venus in a close conjunction with dimmer Saturn in the evening twilight on January 22, 2023. They were 22 arc minutes apart this evening. The 1-day-old waxing crescent Moon is below the planet pair deep in the twilight. The magnitude 2.8 star Deneb Algiedi, aka Delta Capricorni, is faintly visible below Venus. Venus was magnitude -3.9 while Saturn was magnitude 0.8. This is a single 1-second exposure with the Canon RF70-200mm lens at 124mm and at f/5.6, on the Canon R5 at ISO 100. Taken from home in southern Alberta. Most processing done in Adobe Camera Raw with the aid of AI Sky and Inverted Sky masks. A mild Orton glow added with Luminar Neo. Noise reduction with ON1 NoNoise AI 2023. There is a portrait orientation version of this as well.

Thin Moon with Venus and Saturn Conjunction (Portrait)

Venus in a close conjunction with dimmer Saturn in the evening twilight on January 22, 2023. They were 22 arc minutes apart this evening. The 1-day-old waxing crescent Moon is below the planet pair deep in the twilight. The magnitude 2.8 star Deneb Algiedi, aka Delta Capricorni, is faintly visible below Venus. Venus was magnitude -3.9 while Saturn was magnitude 0.8. This is a single 0.8-second exposure with the Canon RF70-200mm lens at 171mm and at f/5.6, on the Canon R5 at ISO 100. Taken from home in southern Alberta. Most processing done in Adobe Camera Raw with the aid of AI Sky and Inverted Sky masks. A mild Orton glow added with Luminar Neo. Noise reduction with ON1 NoNoise AI 2023. There is a landscape orientation version of this as well.

Winter Moonrise over Badlands

The rising Full Moon of January 6, 2023 over the Badlands of Horseshoe Canyon, near Drumheller, Alberta. Here the Moon is set a dark blue crepuscular ray (or more correctly, anti-crepuscular ray) converging on the point directly opposite the Sun. The ray was a shadow cast by clouds in the west, which parted enough for a few moments for the setting Sun to light the foreground, making for a colourful contrast between ground and sky. This is a single exposure with the Canon R5 and Canon RF100-400mm lens at 236mm. Most processing in Adobe Camera Raw with ground and sky masks. A mild glow layer added to the ground in Photoshop with Luminar Neo.

The Rising of the Winter "Wolf " Moon

The rising Full "Wolf" Moon of January 6, 2023 over the Badlands of Horseshoe Canyon, near Drumheller, Alberta. The sequence demonstrates the changes in colour of the rising Moon from atmospheric absorption, and changes in its shape from atmospheric refraction. This night the Moon was full almost at the same time as it rose from my location. However, the Moon's high northerly declination — it was about 4° north of the ecliptic — meant that it rose far to the northeast and some 30 minutes before the Sun set, despite the Moon being opposite the Sun. As such, even for the last shot, with the Moon several Moon diameters in altitude, the Sun was still up and lighting the landscape. In fact, at that time the Sun broke through clouds in the southwest to light the foreground with warm light. In this blend, the ground and majority of the sky comes from the final image with the highest Moon and warmest landscape lighting. For the earlier shots the Moon came up in a very bright sky. And so, to better represent the scene, some of the sky coloration — the magentas and cyans — comes from earlier exposures blended in with broad-brush masks. Dark anti-crepuscular rays also added subtle sky colouration and bands of darker blue. This is a sequence of 9 images at an interval of 2.5 minutes, extracted from a set of 80 frames taken every 15 seconds with the camera on automatic exposure, as the sky and ground remained bright enough for an accurate meter reading. The first 8 Moons are masked and layered in with a Lighten blend mode. All images were the Canon R5 at ISO 125 and Canon RF100-400mm lens at 281mm and f/8. Most processing in Adobe Camera Raw with ground and sky masks. Glow and dynamic contrast filters added with ON1 Effects plug-in.

Winter Full Moonrise in Crepuscular Rays

The rising Full Moon of January 6, 2023 over the Badlands of Horseshoe Canyon, near Drumheller, Alberta. Here the Moon is set in the pink Belt of Venus and with dark blue crepuscular rays (or more correctly, anti-crepuscular rays) converging on the point directly opposite the Sun. The rays are shadows cast by clouds in the west, which parted enough for a few moments for the setting Sun to light the foreground, making for a colourful contrast between ground and sky. This night — and this year — the winter Full Moon (popularly called the Wolf Moon) was at a particularly high declination north of the ecliptic, about 4° above the ecliptic. So it rose more to the north than it normally would. This geometry is evident here in that the Moon lies well above (north of) the point where the shadows are converging to, which would be the position of the anti-Sun point on the ecliptic. This was the night of the Full Moon — in fact, the time of Full Moon almost exactly coincided with moonrise for me. However, the high declination of the Moon meant it rose about 30 minutes before sunset, so it rose into quite a bright sky, and was well up by the time the sky darkened enough to show these twilight colours. The next night the Moon, now a day past full, rose 30 minutes after sunset into a much darker sky. This is a single exposure with the Canon Ra and Canon RF70-200mm lens at 94mm. The red-sensitive Ra helps bring out the Belt of Venus colours. Most processing in Adobe Camera Raw with ground and sky masks. A mild glow layer added in Photoshop with the Radiant Photo plug-in.

Northern Stars over Lake Edith in Twilight

A panorama of Lake Edith in Jasper National Park, Alberta, on a calm autumn night, looking north to the stars of Ursa Major, the Great Bear, and the Big Dipper in deep twilight. Arcturus is at far left setting in the northwest over Pyramid Mountain, while Capella in Auriga and the stars of Perseus are rising at right in the northeast. This was on a mid-October night when the Big Dipper rides low in the northern sky from this latitude of 53° N. This is a panorama of four segments, each 30 seconds untracked with the Canon RF15-35mm lens at 15mm and f/2.8 and Canon R5 at ISO 1000. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw.

The Great Bear over Peyto Lake

The stars of Ursa Major, the Great Bear, over the waters of Peyto Lake, Banff, in deep twilight. Arcturus in Böotes, the Bear Driver, is setting over the peak at left. Ursa Major contains the seven stars that make up the Big Dipper, aka the Plough or the Wagon. This was October 13, 2022 on a very clear night in the Rocky Mountains. This is a stack of 6 x 30-second exposures for the ground and a single untracked 30-second exposure for the sky, all at f/2.8 with the Canon RF 15-35mm lens at 15mm, and Canon R5 at ISO 800.

Hunter's Moonrise (Oct 8, 2022)

The rising of the nearly Full Moon on October 8, 2022, the Hunter's Moon. This was the evening before the official day of Full Moon. Jupiter is just at upper right. This is a single shot with the RF70-200mm lens at 200mm and f/4 on the Canon R5. Taken from near home in southern Alberta.

The Waning Moon and Venus at Dawn (August 25, 2022) (Portrait)

The thin waning crescent Moon above Venus in the dawn sky on August 25, 2022, in a portrait oriented version. This is a single shot with the RF70-200mm lens at 110mm on the Canon R6. Diffraction spikes added with AstronomyTools actions.

The Waning Moon and Venus at Dawn (August 25, 2022) (Landscape)

The thin waning crescent Moon above Venus in the dawn sky on August 25, 2022, in a landscape oriented version. This is a single shot with the RF70-200mm lens at 70mm on the Canon R6.

Selfie with a Grand NLC Display at Dawn

Me under a superb and extensive display of noctilucent clouds at dawn on July 16, 2022, with the clouds reaching up to the zenith as the sky brightened. Capella is the star right of centre; Venus is rising at lower right. This is looking northeast to the dawn twilight. Taken from home in southern Alberta, in a single 4-second exposure at f/4 with the RF15-35mm lens at 15mm and Canon Ra at ISO 100.

A Grand Display of Noctilucent Clouds

A superb and extensive display of noctilucent clouds at dawn on July 16, 2022, with the clouds reaching up to the zenith as the sky brightened. Capella is the star right of centre; Venus is rising at lower right. This is looking northeast to the dawn twilight. Taken from home in southern Alberta, in a single 3.2-second exposure at f/4 with the RF15-35mm lens at 15mm and Canon Ra at ISO 100.

Panorama of a Grand Display of Noctilucent Clouds

A superb and extensive "grand display" of noctilucent clouds at dawn on July 16, 2022, with the clouds eventually reaching up to the zenith as the sky brightened. Many ripples and wave structures are visible in the clouds. Capella is the star right of top centre; Venus is rising at lower right; Mars is at upper right. This is looking northeast to the dawn twilight. Taken from home from southern Alberta, at about 4:20 am July 16, 2022, in a panorama of 7 segments, each 1.3-second exposures at f/2.8 with the RF28-70mm lens at 28mm and Canon R5 at ISO 100. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw. The original is 19,500 pixels wide.

Noctilucent Cloud Arc over Canola Field (Later Panorama)

A panorama of an arc of noctilucent clouds over a ripening field of yellow canola, on July 14, 2022 from southern Alberta near Hussar. This was about 11:35 pm MDT with the NLCs beginning to diminish in height. The top edge is showing a red rim from red light from the setting sun illuminating the edge of the clouds at their great height, some 80 km up. The waxing gibbous Moon was rising in the southeast opposite this view but was providing only slight warm illumination. The ground is illuminated mostly by twilight, and I have brightened it to bring out the canola colours and the colour contrast between earth and sky, and to compress the naturally high dynamic range in the scene. There is a panorama version of this scene taken 15 minutes earlier showing the NLCs with a greater vertical height set into a brighter sky. Capella is the bright star at right of centre. This is a panorama cropped from 9 segments, each 25 second at f/5.6 with the Canon RF24-105mm lens at 56mm, and Canon R5 at ISO 400. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw.

Noctilucent Cloud Arc over Canola Field (Early Panorama)

A panorama of an arc of noctilucent clouds over a ripening field of yellow canola, on July 14, 2022 from southern Alberta near Hussar. This was about 11:20 pm MDT with the NLCs near their peak. They reached a little higher when they first appeared a few minutes earlier in the brighter sky, but capturing them is always a balance between getting them at their maximum height vs. the darkness of the sky background to make the fainter structures stand out. The foreground is illuminated mostly by twilight, and I have brightened it to bring out the canola colours and the colour contrast between earth and sky, and to compress the naturally high dynamic range in the scene. Capella is the bright star at right of centre. This is a panorama cropped from 10 segments, each 10 second at f/4 with the Canon RF24-105mm lens at 56mm, and Canon R5 at ISO 200. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw.

Super Moonrise in the Arc of Earth's Shadow

The rising "supermoon" of July 12, 2022 embedded in the blue arc of Earth's shadow, rimmed by the pink Belt of Venus band of twilight colours, all over the badlands formations of Dinosaur Provincial Park on the Red Deer River in Alberta, Canada. The blue arc is the shadow of the Earth cast onto the atmosphere opposite the sunset point. The pink Belt of Venus is from red sunlight still illuminating the upper atmosphere, an effect that lasts only a few minutes at sunset or sunrise, and requires a very clear sky to show up, as it was this night. I shot this from the upper viewpoint at the Park entrance. You might think the Moon is rising over an Earthly "moonscape," but not so, as there is nothing like this landscape on the Moon. The Badlands here were formed by sedimentary rocks laid down in oceans and eroded by glacial runoff of water. None of that happened on the waterless Moon, where the landscape was formed by the flow of lava and the impact of asteroids. This was the evening before the official date of Full Moon, but the timing of the moonrise and placement of the Moon well below the ecliptic meant it rose on July 12 almost at sunset with the sky still well-tinted with twilight, rather than the Moon rising into a dark sky with too great a contrast to shoot, as it did the next night, July 13 when it was the official date of the Full Moon. This is a panorama of 11 segments, with the Canon RF70-200mm lens at 87mm and f/4, and Canon R5 at ISO 100. The original is a massive 48,900 pixels wide, so there is a lot of detail! Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw.

Super Moonrise Over Badlands Panorama

The rising "supermoon" of July 12, 2022 embedded in the blue arc of Earth's shadow, rimmed by the pink Belt of Venus band of twilight colours, all over the badlands formations of Dinosaur Provincial Park on the Red Deer River in Alberta, Canada. The blue arc is the shadow of the Earth cast onto the atmosphere opposite the sunset point. The pink Belt of Venus is from red sunlight still illuminating the upper atmosphere, an effect that lasts only a few minutes at sunset or sunrise, and requires a very clear sky to show up, as it was this night. I shot this from the upper viewpoint at the Park entrance. You might think the Moon is rising over an Earthly "moonscape," but not so, as there is nothing like this landscape on the Moon. The Badlands here were formed by sedimentary rocks laid down in oceans and eroded by glacial runoff of water. None of that happened on the waterless Moon, where the landscape was formed by the flow of lava and the impact of asteroids. This was the evening before the official date of Full Moon, but the timing of the moonrise and placement of the Moon well below the ecliptic meant it rose on July 12 almost at sunset with the sky still well-tinted with twilight, rather than the Moon rising into a dark sky with too great a contrast to shoot, as it did the next night, July 13 when it was the official date of the Full Moon. This is a panorama of 7 segments, with the Canon RF70-200mm lens at 200mm and f/4, and Canon R5 at ISO 100. The original is 32,200 pixels wide, though some segments are soft from camera shake, and uneven field illumination from the lens at f/4 produced some slight bandind at the seams. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw.

Super Mooonrise over the Badlands

The rising "supermoon" of July 12, 2022 embedded in the blue arc of Earth's shadow, rimmed by the pink Belt of Venus band of twilight colours, all over the badlands formations of Dinosaur Provincial Park on the Red Deer River in Alberta, Canada. The blue band on the horizon is the shadow of the Earth cast onto the atmosphere opposite the sunset point. The pink Belt of Venus above the shadow is from red sunlight still illuminating the upper atmosphere, an effect that lasts only a few minutes at sunset or sunrise, and requires a very clear sky to show up, as it was this night. I shot this from the upper viewpoint at the Park entrance. You might think the Moon is rising over an Earthly "moonscape," but not so, as there is nothing like this landscape on the Moon. The Badlands here were formed by sedimentary rocks laid down in oceans and eroded by glacial runoff of water. None of that happened on the waterless Moon, where the landscape was formed by the flow of lava and the impact of asteroids. This was the evening before the official date of Full Moon, but the timing of the moonrise and placement of the Moon well below the ecliptic meant it rose on July 12 almost at sunset with the sky still well-tinted with twilight, rather than the Moon rising into a dark sky with too great a contrast to shoot, as it did the next night, July 13, when it was the official date of the Full Moon. This is a single image, with the Canon RF70-200mm lens at 200mm and f/4, and Canon R5 at ISO 100. There are also panorama versions of this scene.

Noctilucent Clouds Over Canola Field (July 10, 2022)

A panorama of noctilucent clouds to the northwest near midnight on the evening of July 10-11, 2022, over a ripening field of yellow canola in southern Alberta, Canada. This was later in the display when the NLCs had faded somewhat, but the sky colours were still prominent. Foreground illumination is from the bright waxing gibbous Moon to the south, making for a nice contrast of colours between earth and sky. Capella is the bright star at far right to the north. The bright blue-white NLCs at high altitude in our atmosphere near the edge of space also contrast with the dark and low tropospheric weather clouds seen in silhouette. As a bonus — can you spot the deer? It posed for a while during one of the long exposures. This is a crop from 9 segments with the RF24-105mm lens at 105mm and f/4, and Canon R5 at ISO 800, and all 10 seconds. The original cropped panorama is 32,500 pixels wide. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw. Shot from near home in Alberta.

Noctilucent Clouds Over Hill and Road (July 10, 2022)

A panorama of noctilucent clouds to the northwest just before midnight on the evening of July 10-11, 2022, over a hill and red farm road in southern Alberta, Canada. Foreground illumination is from the bright waxing gibbous Moon to the south, making for a nice contrast of colours between earth and sky. Capella is the bright star at right to the north down the farm road. At far right are the stars of Perseus in the northeast. This is an uncropped panorama from 9 segments with the RF24-105mm lens at 105mm and f/4, and Canon R5 at ISO 400, and all 10 seconds. The original panorama is 24,200 pixels wide. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw. Shot from near home in Alberta.

Noctilucent Clouds Over Prairie Field - Wide-Angle View (July 7, 2022)

A panorama of a fairly bright display of noctilucent clouds to the northwest early in the evening on July 7, 2022. Even so, this was about 11:50 pm MDT. The bright NLCs contrast with the dark silhouettes of the closer and lower tropospheric clouds. A gibbous Moon lights the foreground. This is a 3-segment panorama with the RF24-105mm lens at 43mm and f/4, and Canon R5 at ISO 400. All 15-second exposures. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw. There is a version of this shot earlier with the lens at 76mm for a more close-up view but with a wider horizontal coverage with more segments.

Noctilucent Clouds Over Prairie Field (July 7, 2022)

A panorama of a fairly bright display of noctilucent clouds to the northwest early in the evening on July 7, 2022. Even so, this was about 11:45 pm MDT. Capella is the bright star due north down the north-south range road at right. The bright NLCs contrast with the dark silhouettes of the closer and lower tropospheric clouds. A gibbous Moon lights the foreground. This is a crop from a 10-segment panorama with the RF24-105mm lens at 76mm and f/4, and Canon R5 at ISO 400. All 15-second exposures. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw. There is a version of this shot a little later but with the lens zoomed out to 43mm for a wider view vertically, but not as wide horizontally.