The Milky Way in the southern hemisphere sky from Vela at top right to Centaurus at bottom left. At left of centre is the huge Gum Nebula emission nebula bubble. At centre is the Carina Nebula. At bottom are the Small and Large Magellanic Clouds Crux is left of centre. Alpha and Beta Centauri are left of Crux. This is a stack of 5 x 3-minute tracked exposures with the filter-modified Canon 5D MkII camera at ISO 2000 and 14mm Rokinon lens at f/2.5. On the iOptron Sky-Tracker, from Tibuc Gardens Cottage, Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia.
The deep south Milky Way from Alpha and Beta Centauri (at left) to the False Cross in Vela and Carina (at right). At centre is the Carina Nebula and the Southern Cross, Crux, with the dark Coal Sack. Omega Centauri is the bright “star” at upper left. The large naked eye star cluster at lower right below the False Cross is NGC 2516. This is a stack of 5 x 4 minute exposures at f/2.8 with the 35mm Canon L-series lens and filter-modified Canon 5D MkII at ISO 1000, with an additional similar exposure layered in taken through the Kenko Softon A filter to provide the star glows. Tracked on the iOptron Sky Tracker. Taken from the Warrumbungles Motel grounds at the 2016 Oz Sky Star Party, April 5.
A panorama of the entire southern hemisphere Milky Way, from Orion at right to Aquila at left. This was taken from Atacama Lodge near San Pedro de Atacama, Chile, on May 2, 2011. It is an 11-segment mosaic, each segment being 4 x 6 minutes + 1 x 6 minutes with a Kenko Softon filter, all at f/4 and ISO 800 with the Canon 5D MkII and Canon L-series 35m lens. Some airglow added sky gradients at right early in the night in the Orion to Crux portion. Note the sweep of bright blue stars from Scorpius to Orion but angled above then across and below the Milky Way — this is Gould's Belt of new hot stars near us.
