Nightscapes - Panoramas
Colourful Aurora Panorama #3 Over Rocket Range (Feb 26, 2023)
A 360° panorama of a colourful aurora on a Kp6 night on February 26, 2023, from the Churchill Northern Studies Centre, Churchill, Manitoba, at 58° N. This is looking south at centre over the old Rocket Range, with the waxing Moon prominent at right in the west in Taurus near the Pleiades and above Orion. Moonlight illuminates the foreground. North is to the left here. Leo is at left in the east; Orion is at right of centre buried in the aurora. The Studies Centre appears on either side of the 360° panorama. This is a panorama of 13 segments, each 4-second exposures at f/2 with the Venus Optics 15mm lens and Canon R6 at ISO 1600, and in landscape orientation. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw.
Colourful Aurora Panorama #2 Over Rocket Range (Feb 26, 2023)
A 220° panorama of a colourful aurora on a Kp6 night on February 26, 2023, from the Churchill Northern Studies Centre, Churchill, Manitoba, at 58° N. This is mostly looking south over the old Rocket Range, with the waxing Moon prominent at right in Taurus near the Pleiades and above Orion. Moonlight illuminates the foreground. This night auroras were seen as far south as the northern U.S. Leo is at left ; Orion is at right of centre buried in the aurora. This is a panorama of 9 segments, each 4-second exposures at f/2 with the Venus Optics 15mm lens and Canon R6 at ISO 1600, and in landscape orientation. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw.
Colourful Aurora Panorama #1 Over Rocket Range (Feb 26, 2023)
A 220° panorama of a colourful aurora on a Kp6 night on February 26, 2023, from the Churchill Northern Studies Centre, Churchill, Manitoba, at 58° N. This is mostly looking south over the old Rocket Range, with the waxing Moon prominent at right in Taurus near the Pleiades and above Orion. Moonlight illuminates the foreground. This night auroras were seen as far south as the northern U.S. Leo is at left; Orion is at right of centre. At far right is the old headquarters of the Rocket Range, now an auxiliary building for use by the Northern Studies Centre. This is a panorama of 8 segments, each 6-second exposures at f/2 with the Venus Optics 15mm lens and Canon R6 at ISO 1600, and in landscape orientation. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw.
Red and Magenta Aurora Panorama over Rocket Range (Feb 26, 2023)
A 220° panorama of a dimmer but colourful aurora on a Kp6 night on February 26, 2023, from the Churchill Northern Studies Centre, Churchill, Manitoba, at 58° N. This is mostly looking south over the old Rocket Range, with the waxing Moon prominent at centre in Taurus near the Pleiades and above Orion. This night auroras were seen as far south as the northern U.S. Leo is at far left ; Orion is at left of centre; Venus and Jupiter are close together and setting at right. At far right is the old headquarters of the Rocket Range, now an auxiliary building for use by the Northern Studies Centre. This is a panorama of 8 segments, each 6-second exposures at f/2 with the Venus Optics 15mm lens and Canon R6 at ISO 1600, and in landscape orientation. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw.
Aurora in Twilight Panorama #3 (Feb 26, 2023)
A 220° panorama of the aurora appearing in deep twilight on a Kp6 night on February 26, 2023, from the Churchill Northern Studies Centre, Churchill, Manitoba, at 58° N. This night auroras were seen as far south as the northern U.S. Here they appear across the northern and eastern sky still lit by evening twilight and by moonlight from the waxing crescent Moon. The mixing of twilight blue and auroral colours produces more subtle shades of red and magentas, as well as variations in the greens. The Big Dipper is at centre; Leo is at right of centre; Orion is at far right. At left is the Northern Studies Centre, with several of the Road Scholar tour group on the upper deck watching the lights. This is a panorama of 6 segments, each 8-second exposures at f/2 with the Venus Optics 15mm lens and Canon R6 at ISO 800, and in landscape orientation. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw.
Aurora in Twilight Panorama #2 (Feb 26, 2023)
A 270° panorama of the aurora appearing in deep twilight on a Kp6 night on February 26, 2023 from the Churchill Northern Studies Centre, Churchill, Manitoba, at 58° N. This night auroras were seen as far south as the northern U.S. Here they appear across the eastern and southern sky still lit by evening twilight and by moonlight from the waxing crescent Moon. The Big Dipper is at left; Leo is at centre; Gemini is at top to the right of centre; Orion is at right; the Moon is at top right in Taurus by the Pleiades and Hyades. This is a panorama of 8 segments, each 8-second exposures at f/2 with the Venus Optics 15mm lens (camera in portrait orientation) and Canon R6 at ISO 400. Stitched with PTGui
Aurora in Twilight Panorama #1 (Feb 26, 2023)
A 150° panorama of the aurora appearing in deep twilight on a Kp6 night on February 26, 2023 from the second floor observing deck at the Churchill Northern Studies Centre, Churchill, Manitoba, at 58° N. This night auroras were seen as far south as the northern U.S. Here they appear across the eastern and southern sky still lit by evening twilight and by moonlight from the waxing crescent Moon. The Big Dipper is at centre; Leo is at right. This is a panorama of 7 segments, each 8-second exposures at f/2 with the Venus Optics 15mm lens and Canon R6 at ISO 800, and in portrait orientation. Stitched with PTGui
Northern Aurora Panorama (Feb 22, 2023)
A 180° panorama of the aurora curtains across the northern sky, on February 22, 2023, from the grounds northeast of the Churchill Northern Studies Centre, in Churchill, Manitoba. This was a Kp5 level aurora this night, active from twilight on and peaking here at about 9:30 pm. Polaris is at top just left of centre. Cassiopeia is at left, the Big Dipper at right. This is a 5-section panorama, each 8 seconds with the Venus Optics 15mm lens at f/2 and Canon R6 at ISO 800. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw.
Aurora Swirls Panorama Over Rocket Range (Feb 22, 2023)
A 270° panorama of the Northern Lights and aurora curtains across the southern sky, on February 22, 2023, from the grounds of the Churchill Northern Studies Centre, in Churchill, Manitoba. This was a Kp5 level aurora this night, active from twilight on and prominent here in the south at about 8:30 pm. Orion and the winter stars are embedded in the aurora at right of centre, above the old launch structures of the Churchill Rocket Range. The Moon and Jupiter in close conjunction this night are low in the southwest at far right. This is a 6-section panorama, each 13 seconds with the Venus Optics 15mm lens at f/2 and Canon R6 at ISO 1250. Stitched in Adobe Camera Raw. A mild Orton Glow added with Luminar Neo.
Southern Aurora Panorama (Feb 22, 2023)
A 270° panorama of the Northern Lights and aurora curtains across the southern sky, on February 22, 2023, from the grounds of the Churchill Northern Studies Centre, in Churchill, Manitoba. This was a Kp5 level aurora this night, active from twilight on and prominent here in the south at about 8:30 pm. Orion and the winter stars are embedded in the aurora at left of centre, above the old launch structures of the Churchill Rocket Range. The new Centre and the old Rocket Range headquarters building are at right. Members of the Natural Habitat tour group visiting this night are out on the observing deck at right enjoying the show. The Moon and Jupiter in close conjunction this night are low in the southwest at centre near the glow of the town lights. This is a 9-section panorama, each 25 seconds with the Venus Optics 15mm lens at f/2 and Canon R6 at ISO 1600. Stitched in Adobe Camera Raw.
The Winter Milky Way over Badlands (with Labels)
A labelled panorama of the Milky Way on a February winter night over the Badlands of Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta. The panorama extends from Canis Major low on the horizon to Perseus at top near the zenith. Orion is at right of centre, with Gemini to the left and Taurus and Auriga above Orion. Mars is the bright reddish object in Taurus aboce similarly coloured but dimmer Aldebaran, itself amid the Hyades star cluster. The blue Pleiades is at upper right. Sirius is the bright star at bottom. The image takes in the complete Winter Hexagon (aka the Winter Circle) of bright stars. The Milky Way is peppered with red nebulas, notably the large curving arc of Barnard's Loop, a suspected supernova remnant in Orion. The lowest stretches of the Loop get lost in the bright red airglow. The bright Orion Nebula shines in Orion's Sword, while east (left) of Orion is the round Rosette Nebula in Monoceros. At top is the finger-like California Nebula in Perseus. Several Messier star clusters also show up along the Milky Way. The cyan-tinted Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) is above centre amid the Taurus Dark Clouds. Bands of red and yellow-green airglow tint the sky toward the horizon, as well as the glows from distant towns, notably Medicine Hat at centre. Some light haze added natural star glows — I did not use a starglow diffusion filter this night. But I did shoot the sky segments though an URTH broadband light pollution reduction filter, to help make the nebulas pop out more. This is a stitch of 6 segments (using Adobe Camera Raw) for the sky with segments taken at 15° intervals, each 1 minute with the tracker motor on and at ISO 1600. The resulting sky panorama is blended with a stack of 4 untracked images for the ground, each 2 minutes at ISO 800, taken about 40 minutes after the sky segments, when the waning gibbous Moon was rising to light the landscape with a warm side lighting. So this is a time blend. But the camera was not moved between image sets. All were with the Canon RF28-70mm lens at f/2.8 and 28mm, on the filter-modified Canon R camera from AstroGear. This was on the Star Adventurer tracker with an Alyn Wallace V-plate to keep the camera level and aid framing the panorama. Orton glow effects added to the ground with Luminar Neo, and to the sky with Radiant Photo and f/64 Diffusion actions. Star spikes added with AstronomyTools actions. A clean unlabelled version is available.
The Winter Milky Way over Badlands
A panorama of the Milky Way on a February winter night over the Badlands of Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta. The panorama extends from Canis Major low on the horizon to Perseus at top near the zenith. Orion is at right of centre, with Gemini to the left and Taurus and Auriga above Orion. Mars is the bright reddish object in Taurus aboce similarly coloured but dimmer Aldebaran, itself amid the Hyades star cluster. The blue Pleiades is at upper right. Sirius is the bright star at bottom. The image takes in the complete Winter Hexagon (aka the Winter Circle) of bright stars. The Milky Way is peppered with red nebulas, notably the large curving arc of Barnard's Loop, a suspected supernova remnant in Orion. The lowest stretches of the Loop get lost in the bright red airglow. The bright Orion Nebula shines in Orion's Sword, while east (left) of Orion is the round Rosette Nebula in Monoceros. At top is the finger-like California Nebula in Perseus. Several Messier star clusters also show up along the Milky Way. The cyan-tinted Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) is above centre amid the Taurus Dark Clouds. Bands of red and yellow-green airglow tint the sky toward the horizon, as well as the glows from distant towns, notably Medicine Hat at centre. Some light haze added natural star glows — I did not use a starglow diffusion filter this night. But I did shoot the sky segments though an URTH broadband light pollution reduction filter, to help make the nebulas pop out more. This is a stitch of 6 segments (using Adobe Camera Raw) for the sky with segments taken at 15° intervals, each 1 minute with the tracker motor on and at ISO 1600. The resulting sky panorama is blended with a stack of 4 untracked images for the ground, each 2 minutes at ISO 800, taken about 40 minutes after the sky segments, when the waning gibbous Moon was rising to light the landscape with a warm side lighting. So this is a time blend. But the camera was not moved between image sets. All were with the Canon RF28-70mm lens at f/2.8 and 28mm, on the filter-modified Canon R camera from AstroGear. This was on the Star Adventurer tracker with an Alyn Wallace V-plate to keep the camera level and aid framing the panorama. Orton glow effects added to the ground with Luminar Neo, and to the sky with Radiant Photo and f/64 Diffusion actions. Star spikes added with AstronomyTools actions.
The Winter Sky over the Badlands (with Labels)
The sparkling winter stars and constellations over the moonlit badlands of Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta on Feb. 4, 2023. The waxing gibbous Moon is off frame at left providing the illumination on this very clear and mild night. Captured here in a vertical panorama from below the horizon to past the zenith. Orion is below centre, with his Belt pointing down to Sirius and up to Aldebaran. Above reddish Aldebaran is Mars, as it was on Feb 4, 2023. Above Mars is the blue Pleiades cluster. At top left is the bright star Capella in Auriga. Just above Capella is the tiny cyan-coloured fuzzy spot that is Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF), again where it was this night as it was heading southward into Auriga and Taurus, after its closest approach to Earth 3 days earlier. It was nearly overhead this night and an easy sighting in binoculars. I could not frame Castor and Pollux in Gemini as the Moon was too close to that area. A better night for Moon position and lighting geometry would have been a week later with the rising waning Moon, but the clouds did not allow that. I took this night and made the best of it! This is a blend of seven 30-second exposures: one untracked for the ground and a stitch of 6 tracked for the sky, all with the RF28-70mm lens at f/4 and Canon R5 at ISO 200, on the Star Adventurer tracker. The camera was oriented in landscape format and moved upward in increments of 15° per segment. The panorama segments had to be stitched with PTGui, but even then with difficulty as it required adding a lot of manual alignment points for it to successfully stitch all segments. I used the Transverse Cylindrical projection to retain the straight horizon and rectangular image format. A mild Orton glow added with Luminar Neo and star diffraction spikes added with AstronomyTools actions for a "sparkling" effect. It was a perfect winter night, with the temperature only at 0° C and no wind. It was just me there that night, me and the howling coyotes echoing across the valley. This version has labels. A clean version is also available.
The Winter Sky over the Badlands
The sparkling winter stars and constellations over the moonlit badlands of Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta on Feb. 4, 2023. The waxing gibbous Moon is off frame at left providing the illumination on this very clear and mild night. Captured here in a vertical panorama from below the horizon to past the zenith. Orion is below centre, with his Belt pointing down to Sirius and up to Aldebaran. Above reddish Aldebaran is Mars, as it was on Feb 4, 2023. Above Mars is the blue Pleiades cluster. At top left is the bright star Capella in Auriga. Just above Capella is the tiny cyan-coloured fuzzy spot that is Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF), again where it was this night as it was heading southward into Auriga and Taurus, after its closest approach to Earth 3 days earlier. It was nearly overhead this night and an easy sighting in binoculars. I could not frame Castor and Pollux in Gemini as the Moon was too close to that area. A better night for Moon position and lighting geometry would have been a week later with the rising waning Moon, but the clouds did not allow that. I took this night and made the best of it! This is a blend of seven 30-second exposures: one untracked for the ground and a stitch of 6 tracked for the sky, all with the RF28-70mm lens at f/4 and Canon R5 at ISO 200, on the Star Adventurer tracker. The camera was oriented in landscape format and moved upward in increments of 15° per segment. The panorama segments had to be stitched with PTGui, but even then with difficulty as it required adding a lot of manual alignment points for it to successfully stitch all segments. I used the Transverse Cylindrical projection to retain the straight horizon and rectangular image format. A mild Orton glow added with Luminar Neo and star diffraction spikes added with AstronomyTools actions for a "sparkling" effect. It was a perfect winter night, with the temperature only at 0° C and no wind. It was just me there that night, me and the howling coyotes echoing across the valley.
Auroral Arc Between the Milky Ways
This is a 270° panorama of the auroral arc seen across the northern sky on January 14, 2023. It is framed between the setting summer Milky Way (at left in the northwest) and the rising winter Milky Way (at right in the southeast). To the west (right) of the winter Milky Way is Orion, with Sirius below, while above is Aldebaran, the Hyades, reddish Mars, and the blue Pleiades at upper right. The Big Dipper and Ursa Major are above the main arc of aurora to the north at centre. Polaris is at top, left of centre. Cygnus (with the star Deneb) and Lyra (with the star Vega) are setting at left above my house. The auroral arc shows the characteristic yellow-green colour but also upper altitude reds, both from oxygen atoms. The Kp index was about 4 this night, though peaking to Kp5 at times. Clouds rolling in later prevented me from catching more of the show later when it apparently got more active. Taken from home in southern Alberta (latitude 51° N) on January 14, 2023, in a 7-section panorama, each section with the Venus Optics 15mm lens at f/2 on the AstroGear filter-modified Canon R at ISO 800, for 20 seconds each. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw. I was testing the Canon R camera this night.
Galaxy and glacier! This is a vertical panorama of the Milky Way Galaxy over Lake Louise and Victoria Glacier in Banff National Park, Alberta. The Summer Triangle stars of Vega, Deneb and Altair are at centre. The Scutum Starcloud is just above and setting over Victoria Glacier. The dark lanes of interstellar dust — stardust! — weave among the bright star clouds of the Milky Way. I shot this on a fine night on October 17, 2022 from the usual lakeshore promenade. While a very iconic scene, it is a challenge to shoot at night as lights from the Chateau Lake Louise illuminate the foreground and even the distant wooded mountainsides. Some green and red airglow tints the sky along the horizon. This is a blend of three vertical panoramas: - the first is a set of three untracked 2-minute exposures for the ground at ISO 800 with the camera moved up by 15° from segment to segment; - the second shot immediately afterward is made of 7 x 1-minute tracked exposures at ISO 1600 for the sky, also moved 15° vertically from segment to segment; - elements of a third 3-section panorama taken about 90 minutes earlier during "blue hour" were blended in at a low level to provide better lighting on the distant peaks. All with the Canon RF15-35mm lens at f/2.8 and 20mm and Canon R5, and with the camera not moving between image sets, and on the Star Adventurer Mini tracker. The reflected stars are trailed as they come from the untracked ground shots. Tracking reflected stars is very tough as it requires re-aligning the tracker to turn around the reflected celestial pole, in my case 51° below the horizon, not very practical. Panoramas stitched in Adobe Camera Raw and blended and masked in Photoshop. A mild Orton glow effect added with Luminar Neo. Foreground and landscape enhanced with Radiant Photo plug-in.
Northern Stars over Lake Edith
A panorama of the northern stars in autumn over and reflected in the calm waters of Lake Edith in Jasper National Park, in the deep twilight. The Big Dipper and Ursa Major are at left, with Arcturus over Pyramid Mountain at far left. Capella is rising at right, and above it are the stars of Perseus and Cassiopeia. This was on a very clear mid-October night in 2022. This is a blend of two panoramas: a 4 x 1-minute tracked panorama for the sky at ISO 800, and a 4 x 2-minute untracked panorama taken immediately afterwards at ISO 1600, all with the Canon RF15-35mm lens at f/2.8 and 15mm, on the Canon R5. Stitched in Adobe Camera Raw. A mild Orton glow effect added with Luminar Neo. The tracker was the Star Adventurer Mini.
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.
Athabasca River at Moonrise Panorama
A panorama of the glacier-fed Athabasca River and peaks around Mount Fryatt in Jasper National Park, as the Milky Way is setting and the waning gibbous Moon rising, lighting the peaks of the Continental DIvide with lunar alpenglow. Mount Fryatt is at centre, while to the right is Mount Geraldine, and to the left are Brussels Peak and Mount Christie. Jasper is one of the world's largest Dark Sky Preserves. I shot this on a fine night on October 15, 2022 from the "Goats and Glaciers" Viewpoint on the Icefields Parkway. Jupiter, large and fuzzy in some thin cloud, is at far left, while Saturn is left of centre over Mount Christie. The bright area in the Milky Way over Mount Fryatt is the Scutum Starcloud. Altair is the bright star at top. Some green airglow tints the sky at left, while some red airglow or possibly low-level aurora tints the sky at right. The location is called Goats and Glaciers because mountain goats are often here enjoying the salt lick deposits. This is a blend of three 3-section panoramas: - the first taken with a Star Adventurer Mini for 3 x 2-minute tracked exposures for the sky at ISO 800; - the second immediately afterward with the tracker off for 3 x 3-minutes at ISO 800 for the ground; - and the third taken about an hour later as the Moon rose, lighting the peaks with warm light, for 3 x 2.5-minutes at ISO 1600. All with the Canon RF15-35mm lens at f/2.8 and 15mm and Canon R5, and with the camera not moving between image sets . So this is a time blend, combining frames taken an hour apart, to retain the dark sky with the Milky Way before moonrise, blended with the alpenglow at moonrise. However, most of the landscape comes from the earlier panorama lit only by starlight. Panoramas stitched in Adobe Camera Raw and blended and masked in Photoshop.
This is a panorama of Peyto Lake in Banff National Park, on the Icefields Parkway in Alberta, taken at moonrise on a very clear and mild mid-October evening. The glacier-fed lake appears its characteristic blue even when lit by starlight. It is not blended in from an earlier "blue hour" shot. To the southwest at left is the summer Milky Way over Peyto Glacier and Peyto Peak. To the west at centre is Arcturus setting over Caldron Peak, while to the north at left of centre are the stars of the Big Dipper and Ursa Major. At far right, in the blue moonlit sky, is Perseus and the autumn Milky Way. At far left over the walkway is Saturn in Capricornus. Magenta airglow tints the northern sky and nicely frames the peaks, which are lit by golden lunar alpenglow, warm light from the rising waning gibbous Moon behind the peaks at right to the east. This is an example of a "moonstrike" image; the timing was perfect this night to catch the mix of Milky Way and alpenglow. I was the only one there that night to enjoy the view, and occupy the prime spot at the end of the new viewpoint. This is a blend of two panoramas: the first of the sky taken at or just before moonrise with the camera on a star tracker to keep the stars pinpoint, and the second taken for the ground about 20 minutes later with the tracker off, when the Moon was up high enough to light the peaks of the Continental Divide west of Peyto Lake. Both pans were with the Canon RF15-35mm lens at 15mm and f/2.8, and Canon R5 at ISO 1600, with the sky pan being 6 segments for 1 minute each, and the untracked ground panorama being the same 6 segments for 2 minutes each, but with LENR on to subtract thermal noise hot pixels from the image, something the R5 is prone to. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw and masked and blended in Photoshop. Noise reduction was with ON1 NoNoise AI, and foreground enhancement with the Radiant Photo plug-in, plus with a mild Orton glow added mostly to the sky with Luminar Neo.
Panorama of a Colourful Aurora on August 28, 2022
A panorama of a colouful Kp4 level aurora on August 28, 2022, from home in southern Alberta (latitude 51° N). It shows the classic oxygen yellow-greens topped by oxygen reds, but with magentas and blues at left to the northwest where sunlight might still be interacting with the auroral curtains. In this panorama, the upper curtains also take on an orange hue. Above the main curtains are some blobs of pulsating green patches. The Big Dipper and Arcturus are at left. Cassiopeia, Perseus, Andromeda and Pegasus are at centre and at right. Jupiter is the bright object rising at right. Saturn is the dimmer object at far right. This is a panorama of 8 segments, each 10 seconds at f/2.8 with the RF15-35mm lens at 15mm and Canon R5 at ISO 1600. Stitched with PTGui as Camera Raw and Photoshop refused to either stitch all segments (ACR) or provided a distorted projection (PS Photomerge).
Auroral Arc on August 28, 2022
An arc of a Kp4 level aurora on August 28, 2022, from home in southern Alberta (latitude 51° N), showing the classic oxygen greens topped by oxygen reds, but with magentas and blues at left to the northwest where sunlight might still be interacting with the auroral curtains. The Big Dipper and Arcturus are at left. Cassiopeia, Perseus, Andromeda and Pegasus are at right. Jupiter is the bright object rising at far right. This is a panorama of 5 segments, each 20 seconds at f/2.8 with the RF15-35mm lens at 15mm and Canon R5 at ISO 1600. Stitched with PTGui as Camera Raw and Photoshop refused to either stitch all segments (ACR) or provided a distorted projection (PS Photomerge). PTGui did a good job but is still inconsistent in retaining all the EXIF image data.
Stargazing Under the Milky Way
A vertical panorama of the summer Milky Way over the observing field at the Saskatchewan Summer Star Party, held in Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park in southwest Saskatchewan, Canada, at a latitude 49° N. The Park is a Dark Sky Preserve. This was August 26, 2022 on a perfect night of stargazing under very clear skies. The Milky Way extends from Sagittarius near the horizon, to Cygnus nearly overhead at this time, so a vertical sweep of 90°. I've left the satellite trails in for this scene. This is a panorama of 6 segments taken up the Milky Way with the camera on a tracker to prevent star trailing, blended with a set of 5 untracked exposures taken just prior with the tracker motor off for the ground, to prevent the foreground blurring. The ground segments were each 30 seconds at f/2 and ISO 3200, while the sky segments were each 1 minute at f/2.8 and ISO 1600, all with the Canon Ra and RF28-70mm lens, on the Star Adventurer Mini tracker. Each sky segment was a stack of two exposures. Stitched in PTGui, but blended in Photoshop. The original is 6500 x 10300 pixels.
The Northern Stars at Moonrise at Dinosaur Park
This captures a panorama of the northern sky over the foreground landscape of Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, with the waning Moon rising, and an arc of Northern Lights above the northern horizon. A Kp6 show was forecast for this night but nothing spectacular materialized -- we had just a quiescent arc across the north. This was on the night of August 17-18, 2022. The Moon rising at right is the last quarter Moon. Jupiter is the bright object at far right. The Big Dipper and Arcturus are at left; Polaris is at upper left of centre; Cassiopeia and Perseus are at right of centre; while Andromeda and Pegasus are at right. The Andromeda Galaxy is above the Moon. This is a panorama of a blend of 6 tracked (for the sky) and 6 untracked (for the ground) exposures: 2 minutes at f/2.8 and ISO 1600 for the ground and shadow detail, and 1 minute at f/2.8 and ISO 800 for the sky, all with the stock Canon R5 and RF15-35mm lens set at 19mm and the camera turned in portrait orientation. Spacing of the segments was at 30° intervals. The panorama segments for the ground and sky were stitched with Adobe Camera Raw into two panoramas using the same settings, then masked and blended with Photoshop. An additional short exposure of the segment with the Moon in it was blended in to reduce the bright Moon glare. The camera was on the Star Adventurer Mini tracker. The AstroPanel v6 extension panel and its excellent Hot Pixel removal action was used to suppress the abundance of hot pixels in the ground image, resulting from this being a very warm night, and my need to take the image set fast before the Moon rose too high -- so I did not use in-camera Long Exposure Noise Reduction, though I should have! I added a mild Orton effect glow with Luminar AI. The original is 18,800 by 6,500 pixels.