Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) with the Northern Lights and a STEVE arc aurora to the left, all over the Waterton River at Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta, on July 13-14, 2020. This was from the Maskinonge picnic area. The Big Dipper is at upper left. A very faint green picket fence aurora is at right above the comet, a characteristic of STEVE arcs. This was an astounding night for sky phenomena! This is a blend of a stack of six exposures for the ground and water to smooth noise, blended with a single short exposure for the sky, all 15 seconds at f/2 and ISO 3200, with the 20mm Sigma Art lens and Canon EOS Ra camera (with the Nikon-mount Sigma lens adapted to the EOS Ra with a Metabones F to RF adapter). LENR employed on all shots to reduce thermal noise this warm summer night.
The galactic core area of the Milky Way over Maskinonge Pond in Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta. Jupiter is the bright object at left, with Saturn dimmer to the left (east) of Jupiter. In the summer of 2020 the two planets were close together in the summer sky. Jupiter provides the glitter path on the water. Antares and Scorpius are to the right. Sagittarius is at centre. This was July 13-14, 2020. As is typical of Waterton, it was windy enough tonight that there was no sharp reflection of the stars and Milky Way in the water. This is a stack of 12 exposures for the ground, mean combined to smooth noise in the dark foreground, with the sky from one exposure, all untracked for 30 seconds at f/2 with the Sigma 20mm lens on the Canon EOS Ra camera at ISO 3200. Stacked and blended in Photoshop.
Another amazing sky scene — A panorama of the late night sky just before midnight on July 13, 2020 from Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta, Canada with Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3) over the front range of the Rocky Mountains and an arc of aurora across the north. Earlier, noctilucent clouds were also visible. Quite the show! This was taken from the Bison Compound access road. This is an 6-segment panorama with the 35mm Canon lens at f/2.2 for 25 seconds each at ISO 800 with the Canon 6D MkII and stitched with Adobe Camera Raw.
