Nightscapes - Star Trails
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 Crowded Sky — All-Night Satellites (June 1-2, 2022)
This is a blend of exposures showing all the satellites (and a few aircraft) recorded by the camera on a late spring night (June 1-2, 2022) from latitude 51° North, from where and when satellites are illuminated all night long and can be seen all through the short night. This is looking almost due south. This illustrates the very crowded sky above us now. And likely none of these are SpaceX Starlink satellites, as most of those are now below naked-eye brightness when in their final orbits. The satellites recorded here would have mostly been visible to the naked-eye. Most of the brightest satellites are also polar-orbiting, in north-south paths here. The Space Station did not make any passes this night. A few trails (the colourful ones, made of lots of dots) are from aircraft. And some very short streaks are meteors, or perhaps flaring satellites. The inset shows a blow up of the central area, showing even more satellites, the fainter ones, visible at that greater scale. The field of view of the main image is 120° wide. This is a stack of 515 exposures taken over 3 hours 15 minutes from 11:23 pm to 2:38 am MDT on June 1-2, 2022, each 20 seconds long with the 11mm TTArtisan full-frame fish-eye lens at f/2.8 and the Canon R5 at ISOs from 1600 to 6400, shifted through the night. The camera was on a star tracker, the Star Adventurer Mini, to follow the sky and keep the stars more or less stationary. A slight drift in the tracking motion has made the stars trail slightly. But having the tracker follow the sky means the ground was blurred, as well as sky content such as clouds and light pollution glows. Thus the streaks in the sky. The ground image comes from a single exposure in the middle of the sequence, layered in and masked. Gaps in the satellite trails are from the 1-second interval between exposures. Stacked with the now-discontinued Advanced Stacker Plus actions.
Circumpolar Star Trails with Noctilucent Clouds
An extensive display of noctilucent clouds blended with a star trail sequence of the circumpolar stars of the northern sky. This is a stack of thirty 30-second exposures taken at the end of a sequence of 450 shots, taken when the sky was darkest with the most stars visible, blended with a shorter exposure taken earlier in the night when the noctilucent clouds were more extensive across the twilight sky. So this is a "time-blend" of frames taken from a set shot for a time-lapse. All with the TTArtisan 11mm full-frame fish-eye lens at f/2.8 and on the Canon R6.
The Galactic Centre at Grasslands (with Labels)
The core of the Milky Way in Sagittarius low in the south over the Frenchman River valley at Grasslands National Park, Saskatchewan. This is from the 76 Ranch Corral site. Grasslands is a Dark Sky Preserve. The frame takes in the openj star clusters M6 and M7 just above the horizon in Scorpius, on up through the Sagittarius Starcloud and galactic core, then up past the red nebulas M8 and M20, the Small Sagittarius Starcloud M24 flanked by the clusters M23 and M25, then the nebulas M17 and M16 at top in Serpens. The globular cluster M55 is visible at far left. Jupiter is bright at right above reddish Antares, Saturn is dimmer at left, to the left of the globular cluster M22. I shot this August 27, 2019. This is a stack of 5 x 3-minute tracked exposures for the sky (to avoid star trails) blended with a stack of 5 x 3-minute untracked exposures for the ground, all with the 35mm Canon lens at f/2.8 and filter-modified Canon 5D MkII camera at ISO 1600. The tracker was the Star Adventurer.
The Galactic Centre at Grasslands
The core of the Milky Way in Sagittarius low in the south over the Frenchman River valley at Grasslands National Park, Saskatchewan. This is from the 76 Ranch Corral site. Grasslands is a Dark Sky Preserve. The frame takes in the openj star clusters M6 and M7 just above the horizon in Scorpius, on up through the Sagittarius Starcloud and galactic core, then up past the red nebulas M8 and M20, the Small Sagittarius Starcloud M24 flanked by the clusters M23 and M25, then the nebulas M17 and M16 at top in Serpens. The globular cluster M55 is visible at far left. Jupiter is bright at right above reddish Antares, Saturn is dimmer at left, to the left of the globular cluster M22. I shot this August 27, 2019. This is a stack of 5 x 3-minute tracked exposures for the sky (to avoid star trails) blended with a stack of 5 x 3-minute untracked exposures for the ground, all with the 35mm Canon lens at f/2.8 and filter-modified Canon 5D MkII camera at ISO 1600. The tracker was the Star Adventurer.
Moonrise Star Trails at Dinosaur Park
The eroding formations of Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, lit by the rising gibbous Moon, off camera at right, on April 21/22, 2019. This is looking north, with the stars of the northern sky pivoting around Polaris. This is a stack of 8 exposures, mean combined to smooth noise, for the ground, and 250 exposures for the sky, blended with Lighten mode to create the stails. However, I used the Advanced Stacker Plus actions in Photoshop to do the stacking, creating the tapering effect in the process. All exposures with the 15mm Laowa lens at f/2.8 and Sony a7III at ISO 3200, each for 30 seconds. Luminar Flex effects Soft Glow added to the sky and Autumn Colors added to the ground.
The Winter Stars and Zodiacal Light at Dinosaur Park
Orion and the winter stars setting on a spring evening at Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, with the Zodiacal Light rising out the urban sky glow from distant Calgary. Sirius is at far left, with Orion setting behind the badlands hill, while the Pleiades is in the Zodiacal Light band at right, with Mars just below the Pleiades. High haze and aircraft contrails add the natural star glows. The ugly yellow glow of light pollution contrasts with the delicate natural glows of the Zodiacal Light and Milky Way. This is a panorama stitched from 3 segments, all with the 24mm Sigma Art lens and Nikon D750, for 20 seconds at f/2.2 and ISO 4000. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw.
Winter Sky Setting at Dinosaur Park Panorama
A wide panorama of Orion and the winter stars setting on a spring evening at Dinosaur Provincial Park, with the Zodiacal Light rising out of the twilight and distant yellow sky glow to the west at centre. Sirius is at left to the southwest, with Orion setting behind the badlands hill, while the Pleiades is in the Zodiacal Light band at centre, with Mars just below the Pleiades. Perseus, Cassiopeia, and the Andromeda Galaxy are setting at right in the northwest. High haze and aircraft contrails (one at centre) add the natural star glows. The lingering twilight adds the sky colour. This is a 240° panorama stitched from 17 segments, all with the 24mm Sigma Art lens and Nikon D750 in portrait orientation, each segment 20 seconds at f/1.4 and ISO 3200. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw. A mild Orton glow effect was added to the landscape with Luminar 3 plugin.
A blend of images to show the stars of the southern sky moving from east to west (left to right) over the peaks of the Continental Divide at Herbert Lake near Lake Louise, in Banff, Alberta. The main peak at left is Mount Temple. A single static image shows the Milky Way and stars at the end of the motion sequence. The star trails and Milky Way reflect in the calm waters of the small Lake Herbert this night on July 17, 2018. This is a stack of 100 images for the star trails, stacked with the Long Streak function of Advanced Stacker Plus actions, plus a single exposure taken a minute or so after the last star trail image. The star trail stack is dropped back a lot in brightness, plus they are blurred slightly, so as to not overwhelm the fixed sky image. The sky images are blended with a stack of 8 images for the ground, mean combined to smooth noise in the ground. All are 30 seconds at f/2.8 with the 24mm Sigma lens and Nikon D750 at ISO 3200. All were taken as part of a time-lapse sequence. Clouds moving in added the odd dark patches in the Milky Way that look like out of place dark nebulas. The reflected star trails are really there in the water and have not be copied, pasted and inverted from the sky image. They look irregular because of rippling in the water.
A blend of images to show the stars of the southern sky moving from east to west (left to right) over the Rocky Mountains at Bow Lake, in Banff, Alberta. The main peak at centre is Bow Peak. Crowfoot Glacier is at far left; Bow Glacier is at right below the Milky Way. A single static image shows the Milky Way and stars at the end of the motion sequence. The star trails and Milky Way reflect in the calm waters of Bow Lake this night on July 16, 2018, though they appear large and out of focus. This is a stack of 300 images for the star trails, stacked with the Ultrastreak function of Advanced Stacker Plus actions, plus a single exposure taken a minute or so after the last star trail image. The star trail stack is dropped back a lot in brightness, plus they are blurred slightly, so as to not overwhelm the fixed sky image. The sky images are blended with a stack of 8 images for the ground, mean combined to smooth noise in the ground. All are 30 seconds at f/2 with the 15mm Laowa lens and Sony a7III at ISO 3200. All were taken as part of a time-lapse sequence. Bands of airglow add the green streaks to the sky.
Star Trails over Storm Mountain
The stars trailing as they move east to west (left to right), ending with the Milky Way and Galactic Centre (right) over Storm Mountain and the Vermilion Pass area of the Continental Divide in Banff National Park, Alberta. Mars is the bright trail at left. Saturn is amid the Milky Way at right. This was July 15, 2018. The lights at left are from the Castle Mountain interchange at Highways 1 and 93. This is a stack of 8 exposures, mean combined to smooth noise, for the ground, plus 200 exposures for the star trails, and one exposure, untracked, for the fixed sky taken about a minute after the last star trail image. All 30 seconds at f/2.8 with the 24mm Sigma lens, and Nikon D750 at ISO 6400. The frames were taken as part of a time-lapse sequence. Dynamic Contrast filter from ON1 applied to the ground, and Soft and Airy filter from Luminar applied to the sky for a soft Orton effect.
A Busy Sky – Mars, Meteor, Milky Way and Iridiums!
A busy sky with bright red Mars rising east of the Milky Way, while a pair of Iridium satellites flare briefly as they travel in unison up along the Milky Way from south to north. Meanwhile, about 20 minutes later a very bright meteor flared and produced a lasting train of “smoke”, seen at left and composited in from two later frames – but with it located where it appeared, above Mars. But to be clear — the meteor did not appear at the same time as the Iridiums. Nevertheless, this captures the fact that there were a lot of satellites and meteors this night, on a very clear though short summer night. It was a busy sky! The Iridium trails come from 5 exposures masked and layered onto a single base image of the sky, to minimize star trailing. I say they are Iridiums as they have all the hallmark of such, but no Iridium flares were predicted for this time and position, so they could be another pair of satellites. But they do seem like Iridiums and these will be among the last such flares, as by year end the first generation of flaring Iridiums will have been de-orbited, replaced by a new style of satellite whose design does not produce flares. So “Flare-well” Iridiums! Each exposure was 30 seconds at f/2.8 with the Sigma 24mm Art lens and the Nikon D750 at ISO 3200. They were taken as part of a 200-frame time-lapse. Taken from home in Alberta on July 9-10, 2018 as part of some technique testing.
Milky Way and Planets over a Prairie Pond
A 160° panorama taken July 5/6 of the summer Milky Way and the array of summer 2018 planets over the prairie pond near home in southern Alberta. Mars is bright to the left, Saturn is dimmer and at centre in the Milky Way, while bright Jupiter is at right. Mars and Jupiter nicely flank the Milky Way, and cast glitter paths on the water. The arcing line joining the planets defines the arc of the ecliptic, always low in the south in northern hemisphere summer. Mars was approaching Earth and brightening at this time heading for a late July opposition. The sky is deep blue with solstice twilight. Several satellite trails punctuate the sky. This is a panorama with 2 tiers of 6 segments each, stitched with Adobe Camera Raw. Each segment was 20 seconds at f/2 with the 20mm Sigma Art lens and Nikon D750 at ISO 6400. Glow effect and vignetting added with Zone System Express extension effects.
Jupiter and Saturn over Maskinonge Lake
Jupiter (at right) and Saturn (at left) shining brightly in the sky and reflected in the still waters of Maskinonge Lake at Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta, on June 17/18, 2018. The Milky Way is at left, Scorpius is at centre, and two satellite trails are at top. The sky is blue with solstice twilight. The trees on the opposite shore are charred from the Kenow Fire in September 2017. In the distance are Sofa Mountain and Viny Peak. This is a stack of 10 exposures for the ground, mean combined to smooth noise, and one exposure for the sky and stellar reflections. All 20 seconds at f/2.2 with the Sigma 20mm Art lens and Nikon D750 at ISO 3200.
Liberty Schoolhouse with Star Trails
The 1910 Liberty Schoolhouse, a classic pioneer one-room school, on the Alberta prairie under the stars on a spring night, with circumpolar star trails circling Polaris, and an aurora dancing to the north. Moonlight from the 8-day-old waxing Moon provides the illumination. This is a stack of 155 exposures for the sky for the star trails, and a mean-combined stack of 8 exposures for the ground to smooth noise, with a vintage effect using Luminar applied to the ground for the rustic tone. Star trail stacking with Advanced Stacker Plus Actions in Photoshop with Ultrastreaks effect. With the Laowa 15mm lens and Sony a7III camera. All 20 seconds at f/2.8 and at ISO 800, and taken as part of a 360-frame time-lapse.
Star Trails over the Red Deer River
Circumpolar star trails and aurora over the Red Deer River, Alberta from the Orkney Viewpoint north of Drumheller on May 5, 2018. This is a stack of 650 images for the sky and river reflections using Advanced Stacker Plus actions in Ultrastreak mode. The ground comes from a stack of the final 8 images in the set, averaged to smooth noise. All exposures were 10 seconds at f/2 with the 14mm Sigma Art lens and Nikon D750 at ISO 3200. The frames were taken for a time-lapse movie of the aurora, which proved fairly quiet this night, so in stacking the sky, the aurora did not blur too much. Most of the curtain activity seen here was in the last dozen or so frames.
Orion Rising Star Trails at Dinosaur Park
Orion rising in star trails and in the moonlight, at Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, on November 27, 2017. Light is from the 8-day waxing Moon off camera to the right. This is a stack of 100 exposures for the star trails, followed by a gap of a miniute, then a final single exposure to add the point-like stars at the ends of the trails. Another gaussian blur layer adds the star glows. The 100 star trail frames were extracted from the end of a 1200-frame time-lapse sequence. All exposures were 10 seconds at f/2 with a 24mm Sigma Art lens and Nikon D750 at ISO 800. Stacking was with the Advanced Stacker Plus actions from Star Circle Academy, v14e.
A composite stack of 12 images taken June 11/12, 2017 of the waning gibbous Moon tracking low across the southern sky on a June nght, from moonrise at left at 11:30 pm to when it began to leave the frame at right at 4 a.m. and when the sky was brightening with dawn. Images are at 25-minute intervals. The sky is blue here from the moonlight. This demonstrates how the summer Moon at and around Full phase tracks low across the south just as the Sun does during winter. The frames here were taken from an 1172-frame time-lapse, from home in southern Alberta, with the Nikon D750 and 24mm lens. While the sky comes from a stack of 12 images, the ground is from a stack of just two, to minimize the loss of shadows from the moving Moon. Exposures were 10 to 13 seconds, vastly overexposing the Moon but the sequence was intended first and foremost for a time-lapse where each frame has to be well-exposed to show the sky and ground, and not just the disk of the Moon in a dark underexposed scene.
Orion Setting in Star Trails at Loch Ard Gorge
Orion (right) and Sirius (upper right) setting into the west over Loch Ard Gorge on the Great Ocean Road, Victoria, Australia, with illumination from the rising Moon a day past full behind the camera to the east. This is the location of the wreck of the Loch Ard immigrant ship, where only two survived by swimming ashore at this gorge and climbing the cliffs to find a ranch house nearby. This is a stack of 100 exposures for the sky and water, each 15 seconds, with the ground coming from one frame in the sequence to prevent the moving shadows from the rising Moon from blurring detail. All with the 14mm Rokinon lens at f/2.5 and Canon 6D at ISO 800. Stacked with Advanced Stacker Action Elastic Stars effect.
Panorama of the Winter Sky in March
A horizon-to-zenith panorama of the winter consellations on a March evening as they set into the southwest. Orion is at bottom centre, with his Belt pointing down to Canis Major and up to Taurus. Gemini and Auriga are at top, in this case near the zenith overhead. The bright star clusters, M44, the Beehive, (at left) and M45, the Pleiades, (at right) flank the Milky Way. M45 is embedded in the Zodiacal Light. The star clusters M35 in Gemini and M41 in Canis Major are also visible as diffuse spots, as are several other star clusters. A couple of satellite trails are visible. Taken from home Match 19, 2017, for use as a book illustration. This is a panorama of 5 panels, each with the 20mm Sigma Art lens at f/2, and Nikon D750 at ISO 3200, for 25 seconds each. Stitched with Adobe Camera Raw.
Star trails over Moraine Lake from Aug 31, 2016. This is a stack of about 300 exposures for the sky and 8 for the ground to smooth noise. Each exposure was 15 seconds at f/2 with the Sigma 20mm lens. Master dark frame applied in processing. Stacking with Advanced Stacker Plus actions in Photoshop.
Circumpolar Stars over Tibuc Cottage
Southern circumpolar stars over the Tibuc Gardens Cottage, with the foreground illuminated by moonlight. The Milky Way forms the brighter band running across the sky above the Pole. The sky is a stack of 388 exposures, each 30 seconds with the 15mm lens at f/2.8 and Canon 6D at ISO 3200. Stacked with Advanced Stacker Plus Actions using Ultrastreaks mode. The foreground comes from the first frame in the sequence when the waxing Moon was still up.
Southern Sky Star Trails - OzSky Looking South
The southern hemisphere sky turning about the South Celestial Pole in April 2016, taken at OzSky star party looking south in a stack of 200 frames, the last in the 450 frame sequence, and stacked with Ultrastreaks with Advanced Stacker Plus actions. The ground comes from a partial blend of 9 frames in the sequence. The South Celestial Pole is at centre. Taken from near Coonabarabran, NSW. Taken with the Canon 6D and Canon 15mm full-frame fish-eye lens. Each frame was 45 seconds at f/2.8 and ISO 4000.
Star Trails over the OzSky Star Party
Circumpolar star trails over the OzSky star party near Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia, on April 3, 2016. This is a small annual star party attended by about 35 observers from around the world on a limited registration basis and put on by the Three Rivers Foundation in Australia. The view is looking due south here to the South Celestial Pole, with the southern Milky Way arching overhead, with Crux, the Southern Cross at top. The LMC is at bottom right. The field is filled with telescopes for observers to use to explore the wonders of the southern hemisphere sky. The stars are turning around the blank area that is the South Celestial Pole in Octans. This site is at a latitude of 32° South. This is a stack of 49 frames, each 45 seconds at f/2.8 with the 15mm fish-eye lens on the Canon 6D at ISO 4000. The ground comes from three frames in the sequence. Stacked with Advanced Stacker Plus actions using Streaks mode.