ラブジョイ彗星のすぐ隣を、煙のような「流星痕」を残して流星がかすめ飛ぶ様子が撮影されている。
ラヴジョイ彗星を望遠レンズで連写中、流星痕をともなった流れ星が写野に偶然飛び込んできま... on Twitpic">
コトバンクによると、流星痕とは「流星が通った後、大気中に残る光の筋」のこと。明るい流星でしばしば見られ、数秒程度で消滅するが、まれに数十分も残る場合があるという。
なお、流星電波観測国際プロジェクトでは、今年のふたご座流星群は12月14日夜にピークを迎え、今後の出現数は少なくなると報じている。
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ラブジョイ彗星の写真集
2013年11月19日のラブジョイ彗星(01 of14)
Comet ISON is capturing all the current headlines, but here\'s another comet in the early morning skies. At a magnitude 5, comet Lovejoy is barely visible to the unaided eye in the constellation of Ursa Major, but it really stands out in a good pair of binoculars. Taken on Nov. 19, 2013, this three-minute exposure shows the comet and its tail, while the galaxy at the top left is NGC 3665. At the time of this image, comet Lovejoy was 37 million miles from Earth, very near to its closest approach. It is currently inbound toward the sun and will reach perihelion between Earth and Venus on Dec.22.\n\nComet Lovejoy in Ursa Major | NASA (credit:NASA/MSFC/Jacobs Technology/ESSSA/Aaron Kingery)
2013年12月2日のラブジョイ彗星(02 of14)
(credit:国立天文台 岡山天体物理観測所)
Lovejoy R1 11 27 13 stacked(03 of14)
2013年のラブジョイ彗星 (credit:Flickr:Rocky Raybell)
Comet Lovejoy C/2013 R1 6 frames 5 seconds 3200 11 25 13(04 of14)
2013年のラブジョイ彗星 (credit:Flickr:Rocky Raybell)
Comet Lovejoy Nov 17th(05 of14)
2013年のラブジョイ彗星 (credit:Flickr:Rocky Raybell)
What is a Sungrazing Comet? [hd video](06 of14)
2013年のラブジョイ彗星の動画 (credit:Flickr:NASA Goddard Photo and Video)
Cometa C/2011 W3 Lovejoy, 24/12/2011 [1/2](07 of14)
2011年のラブジョイ彗星 (credit:Flickr:Renato.Pimentel)
Cometa C/2011 W3 Lovejoy, 24/12/2011 [2/2](08 of14)
2011年のラブジョイ彗星 (credit:Flickr:Renato.Pimentel)
Comet Lovejoy(09 of14)
2011年のラブジョイ彗星 (credit:Flickr:ifindkarma)
Comet Lovejoy from the ISS(10 of14)
2011年のラブジョイ彗星 (credit:Flickr:NASAblueshift)
Comet SWAN Dives into the Sun [hd video](11 of14)
2011年のラブジョイ彗星 (credit:Flickr:NASA Goddard Photo and Video)
Comet Lovejoy Survives [hd video](12 of14)
2011年のラブジョイ彗星の動画 (credit:Flickr:NASA Goddard Photo and Video)
Comet SWAN Dives into the Sun [hd video](13 of14)
2011年のラブジョイ彗星の動画 (credit:Flickr:NASA Goddard Photo and Video)
Love and Joy for the New Year(14 of14)
2011年のラブジョイ彗星の動画 (credit:Flickr:NASA Earth Observatory)
アイソン彗星画像集
Comet ISON as seen by STEREO on Nov. 25, 2013(01 of04)
一時、核が崩壊したのではないかと心配されたアイソン彗星だが、その後無事姿が確認された\n\nA screen capture from the latest movie from the STEREO-A spacecraft\'s Heliospheric Imager shows the comet on Nov. 25, 2013. (credit:NASA)
Comet ISON Streaks Toward the Sun(02 of04)
Comet ISON shows off its tail in this three-minute exposure taken on Nov. 19, 2013 at 6:10 a.m. EST, using a 14-inch telescope located at the Marshall Space Flight Center. The comet is just nine days away from its close encounter with the sun; hopefully it will survive to put on a nice show during the first week of December. The star images are trailed because the telescope is tracking on the comet, which is now exhibiting obvious motion with respect to the background stars over a period of minutes.\nAt the time of this image, Comet ISON was some 44 million miles from the sun -- and 80 million miles from Earth -- moving at a speed of 136,700 miles per hour. (credit:NASA/MSFC/Aaron Kingery)
Bright Comet ISON(03 of04)
Comet ISON shines brightly in this image taken on the morning of Nov. 19, 2013. This is a 10-second exposure taken with the Marshall Space Flight Center 20\" telescope in New Mexico. The camera there is black and white, but the smaller field of view allows for a better \"zoom in\" on the comet\'s coma, which is essentially the head of the comet. (credit:NASA/MSFC/MEO/Cameron McCarty)
Comet Ison Roars Through Leo(04 of04)
In the early morning of Oct. 25 (6:45 a.m. EDT), NASA\'s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., used a 14\" telescope to capture this image of Comet C/2012 S1 (ISON), which is brightening as it approaches the sun. The comet shines with a faint green color just to the left of center. The diagonal streak right of center was caused by the Italian SkyMed-2 satellite passing though the field of view. At magnitude 8.5, the comet is still too faint for the unaided eye or small binoculars, but it\'s an easy target in a small telescope.\nAt this time of this image, ISON was located in the constellation of Leo the Lion, some 132 million miles from Earth and heading in toward the sun at 87,900 miles per hour. (credit:NASA/MSFC/Aaron Kingery)
美しい宇宙写真集
織姫と彦星(01 of52)
中央上の明るい星がベガ（織姫）、左中央の明るい星がアルタイル（彦星）。左下のデネブと合わせた三角形が「夏の大三角」と名付けられている。 (credit:Getty Images)
こと座のベガ(02 of52)
こと座で最も明るく、七夕の伝説では織姫（おりひめ）として知られている。 (credit:Getty Images)
わし座のアルタイル(03 of52)
日本では七夕の伝説の「彦星（ひこぼし）」として知られている。 (credit:Getty Images)
こと座の星々(04 of52)
右上に見える最も明るい星がベガ。日本では七夕の伝説に登場する「織姫」として知られている。 (credit:Getty Images)
Summer triangle of stars(05 of52)
Summer triangle of stars (credit:Getty Images)
The constellations Delphinus, Vulpecula, Sagita and Aquila in the northern sky.(06 of52)
The constellations Delphinus, Vulpecula, Sagita and Aquila in the northern sky. (credit:Getty Images)
Aquila constellation. The Milky Way running through the constellation Aquila, the eagle. North is at top. The bright star in the center is Altair (Alpha Aquilae). This star is flanked by Tarazed (Gamm(07 of52)
Aquila constellation. The Milky Way running through the constellation Aquila, the eagle. North is at top. The bright star in the center is Altair (Alpha Aquilae). This star is flanked by Tarazed (Gamma Aquilae, above) and Alshain (Beta Aquilae, below). Alt (credit:Getty Images)
The silhouette of the space shuttle Endeavour, Feb 9, 2010(08 of52)
The silhouette of the space shuttle Endeavour appears over Earth\'s colorful horizon in this image photographed by an Expedition 22 crew member on Feb. 9, 2010. (credit:NASA)
Flying V Galaxy(09 of52)
\"These tidal tails are thin, elongated streams of gas, dust and stars that extend away from a galaxy into space. They occur when galaxies gravitationally interact with one another, and material is sheared from the outer edges of each body and flung out into space in opposite directions, forming two tails. They almost always appear curved, so when they are seen to be relatively straight, as in this image, it is clear that we are viewing the galaxies side-on.\" (credit:Nasa)
Stars Brewing in Cygnus X(10 of52)
A bubbling cauldron of star birth is highlighted in this image from NASA\'s Spitzer Space Telescope. Infrared light that we can\'t see with our eyes has been color-coded, such that the shortest wavelengths are shown in blue and the longest in red. The middle wavelength range is green.\n\nMassive stars have blown bubbles, or cavities, in the dust and gas--a violent process that triggers both the death and birth of stars. The brightest, yellow-white regions are warm centers of star formation. The green shows tendrils of dust, and red indicates other types of dust that may be cooler, in addition to ionized gas from nearby massive stars. (credit:NASA)
Dusty Space Cloud(11 of52)
This image shows the Large Magellanic Cloud galaxy in infrared light as seen by the Herschel Space Observatory, a European Space Agency-led mission with important NASA contributions, and NASA\'s Spitzer Space Telescope. In the instruments\' combined data, this nearby dwarf galaxy looks like a fiery, circular explosion. Rather than fire, however, those ribbons are actually giant ripples of dust spanning tens or hundreds of light-years. Significant fields of star formation are noticeable in the center, just left of center and at right. The brightest center-left region is called 30 Doradus, or the Tarantula Nebula, for its appearance in visible light. (credit:NASA)
Dunes in Noachis Terra Region of Mars(12 of52)
This enhanced-color image shows sand dunes trapped in an impact crater in Noachis Terra, Mars. Dunes and sand ripples of various shapes and sizes display the natural beauty created by physical processes. The area covered in the image is about six-tenths of a mile (1 kilometer) across.\n\nSand dunes are among the most widespread wind-formed features on Mars. Their distribution and shapes are affected by changes in wind direction and wind strength. Patterns of dune erosion and deposition provide insight into the sedimentary history of the surrounding terrain. (credit:NASA)
Viewing the South Pole of Vesta(13 of52)
This image obtained by the framing camera on NASA\'s Dawn spacecraft shows the south pole of the giant asteroid Vesta.\n\nScientists are discussing whether the circular structure that covers most of this image originated by a collision with another asteroid, or by internal processes early in the asteroid\'s history. Images in higher resolution from Dawn\'s lowered orbit might help answer that question.\n\nThe image was recorded with the framing camera aboard NASA\'s Dawn spacecraft from a distance of about 1,700 miles (2,700 kilometers). The image resolution is about 260 meters per pixel.\n\n (credit:NASA)
In, Around, Beyond Rings(14 of52)
A quartet of Saturn\'s moons, from tiny to huge, surround and are embedded within the planet\'s rings in this Cassini composition.\n\nSaturn\'s largest moon, Titan, is in the background of the image, and the moon\'s north polar hood is clearly visible. See PIA08137 to learn more about that feature on Titan (3,200 miles, or 5,150 kilometers across). Next, the wispy terrain on the trailing hemisphere of Dione (698 miles, or 1,123 kilometers across) can be seen on that moon which appears just above the rings at the center of the image. See PIA10560 and PIA06163 to learn more about Dione\'s wisps. Saturn\'s small moon Pandora (50 miles, or 81 kilometers across) orbits beyond the rings on the right of the image. Finally, Pan (17 miles, or 28 kilometers across) can be seen in the Encke Gap of the A ring on the left of the image.\n\nThe image was taken in visible blue light with the Cassini spacecraft narrow-angle camera on Sept. 17, 2011. The view was obtained at a distance of approximately 1.3 million miles (2.1 million kilometers) from Dione and at a Sun-Dione-spacecraft, or phase, angle of 27 degrees. Image scale is 8 miles (13 kilometers) per pixel on Dione. (credit:NASA)
Active Galaxy Centaurus A(15 of52)
Resembling looming rain clouds on a stormy day, dark lanes of dust crisscross the giant elliptical galaxy Centaurus A. \n\nHubble\'s panchromatic vision, stretching from ultraviolet through near-infrared wavelengths, reveals the vibrant glow of young, blue star clusters and a glimpse into regions normally obscured by the dust. (NASA / ESA / Hubble Heritage)
Ring of Fire(16 of52)
This composite image shows the central region of the spiral galaxy NGC 4151. X-rays (blue) from the Chandra X-ray Observatory are combined with optical data (yellow) showing positively charged hydrogen (H II) from observations with the 1-meter Jacobus Kapteyn Telescope on La Palma. The red ring shows neutral hydrogen detected by radio observations with the NSF\'s Very Large Array. This neutral hydrogen is part of a structure near the center of NGC 4151 that has been distorted by gravitational interactions with the rest of the galaxy, and includes material falling towards the center of the galaxy. The yellow blobs around the red ellipse are regions where star formation has recently occurred. (NASA / CXC / CfA / J. Wang)
Festival of Lights(17 of52)
WISE, NASA\'s Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, has a new view of Barnard 3, or IRAS Ring G159.6-18.5, that is awash in bright green and red dust clouds. Interstellar clouds like these are stellar nurseries, where baby stars are being born. (UCLA / JPL-Caltech / NASA)\n (credit:UCLA / JPL-Caltech / NASA)
Pacman Nebula(18 of52)
In visible light, the star-forming cloud known as NGC 281 in the constellation of Cassiopeia appears to be chomping through the cosmos, earning it the nickname the \"Pacman\" nebula after the famous Pac-Man video game of the 1980s. (credit:NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA )
Messier 78(19 of52)
Messier 78 Nebula brings into focus a murky region of star formation. NASA\'s Spitzer Space Telescope exposes the depths of this dusty nebula with its infrared vision, showing stellar infants that are lost behind dark clouds when viewed in visible light. Messier 78 is easily seen in small telescopes in the constellation of Orion (credit:NASA/JPL-Caltech)
Mercury Messenger(20 of52)
At 5:20 a.m. EDT on March 29,2011, the Messenger probe captured this historic image of Mercury. The image is the first ever obtained from a spacecraft in orbit of the solar system\'s innermost planet. (NASA) (credit:NASA)
Celestial Shamrock(21 of52)
This image from NASA\'s Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, features a region of star birth wrapped in a blanket of dust, colored green in this infrared view. Designated as LBN 149.02-00.13, this interstellar cloud is made up of a shell of ionized gas surrounding a void with an extremely hot, bright star in the middle. (UCLA / JPL-Caltech / NASA) (credit:UCLA / JPL-Caltech / NASA)
Cassini of Saturn/Titan(22 of52)
Saturn\'s largest moon, Titan, center, is 3,200 miles in diameter. The smaller moon Enceladus, far right, just over 300 miles across, appears just below the rings. The image was taken with the Cassini spacecraft wide-angle camera at a distance of approximately 524,000 miles from Titan. (SSI / JPL / NASA) (credit:SSI / JPL / NASA)
Discovery from the ISS(23 of52)
The space shuttle Discovery is seen from the International Space Station as the two orbital spacecraft accomplish their relative separation. During a post undocking fly-around, the crew of each vessel photographed the opposing craft. (NASA) (credit:NASA)
NGC 2841(24 of52)
This NASA image shows what the Hubble Space Telescope revealed in a majestic disk of stars and dust lanes in the spiral galaxy NGC 2841. A bright cusp of starlight marks the galaxy\'s center. Spiraling outward are dust lanes that are silhouetted against the population of whitish middle-aged stars. Much younger blue stars trace the spiral arms. NGC 2841 lies 46 million light-years away in the constellation of Ursa Major (The Great Bear). (Hubble Heritage / ESA / NASA) (credit:Hubble Heritage / ESA / NASA)
Tempel 1(25 of52)
This image obtained by NASA\'s Stardust spacecraft shows Comet Tempel 1 at 11:39 p.m. EST on Feb. 14, 2011. The NASA spacecraft\'s flyby of the comet showed erosion on Tempel 1\'s surface since it skimmed by the sun in 2005 and revealed the first clear pictures of the crater made by a Deep Impact probe. (Cornell / JPL-Caltech / NASA) (credit:Cornell / JPL-Caltech / NASA)
Sun and Flares(26 of52)
A pair of active regions on the sun were captured in extreme ultraviolet light from the Solar Dynamic Observatory spacecraft over a three-day period. The magnetic field lines above the regions produced fluttering arcs waving above them, as well as a couple of flares. Another pair of smaller active regions emerges and trails behind the larger ones. (Solar Dynamics Observatory / NASA) (credit:Solar Dynamics Observatory / NASA)
North America Nebula -- Feb 16, 2011(27 of52)
This view of the North America nebula combines both visible and infrared light observations, taken by the Digitized Sky Survey and NASA\'s Spitzer Space Telescope, respectively, into a single vivid picture. The nebula is named after its resemblance to the North American continent in visible light, which in this image is represented in blue hues. Infrared light, displayed here in red and green, can penetrate deep into the dust, revealing multitudes of hidden stars and dusty clouds. (credit:NASA / JPL-CalTech)
Sun Eruptions -- Jan. 28, 2011(28 of52)
This still caught the action in freeze-frame splendor when the sun popped off two events at once. A filament, left, became unstable and erupted, while an M-1 flare and a coronal mass ejection, right, blasted into space. Neither event was headed toward Earth. (credit:Solar Dynamics Observatory / NASA)
M51 -- obtained Jan. 19, 2011(29 of52)
This image shows a dramatic view of the spiral galaxy M51, dubbed the Whirlpool Galaxy. Seen in near-infrared light, most of the starlight has been removed, revealing the Whirlpool\'s skeletal dust structure. This image is the sharpest view of the dense dust in M51. The narrow lanes of dust revealed by Hubble reflect the galaxy\'s moniker, the Whirlpool Galaxy, as if they were swirling toward the galaxy\'s core. (credit: Hubble Heritage Team / ESA / NASA)
Giant Supernova -- released on Jan. 14, 2011(30 of52)
While searching the skies for black holes using NASA\'s Spitzer Space Telescope, astronomers discovered a giant supernova that was smothered in its own dust in this image released on Jan. 14. In this artist\'s rendering, an outer shell of gas and dust -- which erupted from the star hundreds of years ago -- obscures the supernova within. This event in a distant galaxy hints at one possible future for the brightest star system in our own Milky Way. (credit:R. Hurt, JPL-Caltech / NASA)
Mars' moons Phobos (large moon) and Deimos, released Dec. 11(31 of52)
Mars\' two moons have been photographed in the same frame for the first time. The European Space Agency\'s Mars Express orbiter snapped this image, which was released Dec. 11, 2009. The larger moon is Phobos. The much smaller one is Deimos. (credit:ESA)
Central Milky Way Galaxy; image released on Nov. 10, 2009(32 of52)
This is one of the most detailed images to date of the heart of the Milky Way. The galaxy\'s center is within the white spot near the right edge of the photo. NASA released the image Nov. 10 to mark the 400th anniversary of the telescope. It is a composite of images from three observatories: the Hubble and Spitzer space telescopes and the Chandra X-ray Observatory. (credit:STScI / CXC / SSC / ESA / NASA)
NGC 2623, the result of a galactic collision, added Oct. 13(33 of52)
This Hubble Space Telescope image shows an object known as both NGC 2623 and Arp 243, which was formed by a collision of two galaxies. The galaxies\' cores have merged into one; the tails streaming from the object are full of young stars. NGC 2623 is about 250 million light-years away in the constellation of Cancer. (credit:NASA)
Barnard's Galaxy, added Oct. 15, 2009(34 of52)
This portrait of Barnard\'s Galaxy, one of the Milky Way\'s closest neighbors, was taken by a telescope at the European Southern Observatory in La Silla, Chile. The red features in the photo are nebulae where new stars are being born. The galaxy has about 10 million stars; the Milky Way has an estimated 400 billion. (credit:ESO)
Saturn during equinox in August 2009(35 of52)
The Cassini spacecraft became the first to photograph an equinox on Saturn, a 15-year event that took place Aug. 11. This photo is a composite of images that Cassini shot over eight hours. New equinox images of the planet show strange formations in its rings and suggest that in some places, the rings are much thicker than expected. (credit:Space Science Institute / JPL / NASA)
Shadows in Saturn's A ring, August 2009(36 of52)
Clumps of debris cast shadows that are visible in the middle of this image of Saturn\'s A ring. The shadows suggest that the clumps are about 2,000 feet tall. Scientists have believed for years that the rings were about 30 feet thick, but based on the new images, scientists now think that they\'re more than 2 miles deep in some spots. \"Isn\'t that the most outrageous thing you could imagine? It truly is like something out of science fiction,\" said Carolyn Porco, leader of the Cassini imaging team. (credit:Space Science Institute / JPL / NASA)
Jupiter's Scar, July 25, 2009(37 of52)
A new photo released in July from the Hubble Space Telescope is the clearest yet of what astronomers are calling a scar on the surface of Jupiter. An object, possibly a comet, struck the planet recently, creating the strange dark patch. It happened on the 15th anniversary of another comet strike. (credit:H. Hammel, Jupiter Impact Team / ESA / NASA)
Kohoutek 4-55 nebula, photographed May 4, 2009(38 of52)
This planetary nebula, named Kohoutek 4-55, was photographed May 4 by the Hubble Space Telescope\'s Wide Field Planetary Camera 2. The nebula, dubbed a \"giant eye,\" contains the outer layers of a red giant star that died. The camera, which is the size of a baby grand piano, has captured several memorable images since it was installed in 1993. (credit:JPL / ESA / NASA)
Black hole light show, added April 14(39 of52)
In this sequence of photos released in April, a jet of gas spews from a massive black hole in the center of the M87 galaxy. The gas fades and brightens, with a peak that even outshines the galaxy\'s core. The outburst is coming from a blob of matter, dubbed HST-1, and scientists are so far at a loss to explain its weird behavior. (credit:J. Madrid, McMaster University / ESA / NASA)
Galaxy Triplet ARP 274, Added April 6(40 of52)
This photo was snapped by the Hubble Space Telescope after winning a public competition to determine what the next space portrait should be. It shows Arp 274, a system of three galaxies -- two larger ones on the right, and a smaller and less intact one on the far left. (credit:M. Livio, Hubble Heritage Team / ESA / NASA)
Red Rectangle nebula added Feb. 10, 2009(41 of52)
Our solar system is in the middle of a cosmic dust storm, and some astronomers said they\'ve zeroed in on the possible source: the Red Rectangle nebula, which is 2,300 light-years away in the constellation Monoceros. A double star system there is spewing the dust, according to findings announced in February. (credit:Van Winckel, M. Cohen, H. Bond, T. Gull, ESA / NASA)
Galactic collision, Oct. 30, 2008(42 of52)
After transmission problems on the Hubble Telescope weren fixed, NASA in October 2008 provided this undated photograph showing the aftermath of galaxies colliding. In the pair known as Arp 147, a reddish-colored galaxy has passed through an O-shaped galaxy glowing blue. (credit:NASA)
Mercury Volcanoes(43 of52)
Photographs taken of Mercury by the spacecraft Messenger in January 2008 were analyzed in the journal Science seven months later. Images like the one above show that volcanic activity played a part in forming plains on the planet. (credit:Arizona State University / JHUAP / NASA)
The Helix nebula(44 of52)
Feel like you are being watched? This infrared image from NASA\'s Spitzer Space Telescope shows the Helix nebula, a cosmic starlet notable for its vivid colors and eerie resemblance to a giant eye. (credit: JPL-Caltech / NASA)
A death star galaxy(45 of52)
Even galaxies get bullied. Here, a so-called \"death star galaxy\" blasts a nearby galaxy with a jet of energy. Scientists said that if this happened in the Milky Way, it would likely destroy all life on Earth. (credit:NASA)
Crab Nebula(46 of52)
In 2005, NASA\'s Hubble Telescope captured this image of the Crab Nebula, a six-light-year-wide expanding remnant of a star\'s supernova explosion. Japanese and Chinese astronomers witnessed this violent event in 1054. (credit:NASA / Getty Images)
Two Satellites given to NASA(47 of52)
US National Reconnaissance Office unexpectedly transferred control of two Hubble-quality satellites to NASA in June of 2012. (credit:NASA)
Apollo 17 at Shorty Crater(48 of52)
Astronauts Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt roam the Moon\'s surface in December 1972. (credit:NASA)
The Great Galaxy in Andromeda, M31(49 of52)
Elder One:
Taken with 10\" Newtonian in central BC, Canada
Taken with 10\" Newtonian in central BC, Canada
Accretion Disk Showing Rotations(50 of52)
Elyas Fraenkel Isaacs:
Gravitational density causes rotation. The resultant forces create matter streams which eventually coalesce to stellar bodies.
Gravitational density causes rotation. The resultant forces create matter streams which eventually coalesce to stellar bodies.
Venusian Transit, 6-5-12, Sunset(51 of52)
sw33tman:
Photo by Marty Swinney. 800mm (35mm equivalent 400mm), 1/6000 @ f22
Photo by Marty Swinney. 800mm (35mm equivalent 400mm), 1/6000 @ f22
Tarantula Nebula(52 of52)
ApolloStar:
Unbelievable Beauty in Deep Space
Unbelievable Beauty in Deep Space
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2013 Shortlisted Images
Eta Carinae and her Keyhole(01 of15)
The Carina Nebula is a chaotic region of star formation several thousand light years from Earth. In the central part of the nebula, shown here, dense clouds of gas and dust are lit up by the light of newly born stars. One of these is a true giant – the star Eta Carinae right at the centre of this image. More than a hundred times as massive as the Sun, and millions of times brighter, Eta Carinae is unstable and will one day explode as a supernova. (credit:Michael Sidonio)
A Flawless Point(02 of15)
This striking and unusual panoramic shot is the result of meticulous planning, an artist’s eye for dramatic lighting and sheer chance. The photograph shows the Milky Way arching over Yosemite Valley in California’s famous national park. A lens-shaped (lenticular) cloud hovers over the distinct granite dome of Liberty Cap, which rises to an elevation of over 2000m, near the centre of the photograph. (credit:Rogelio Bernal Andreo)
Archway to Heaven(03 of15)
The natural rock archway of Durdle Door dramatically frames the distant band of our Milky Way in this carefully composed shot. The spectacular rock formations in this part of Dorset’s Jurassic Coast are more than 100 million years old. However, many of the stars that make up the Milky Way are far older, at up to ten billion years old. (credit:Stephen Banks)
Comet PANSTARRS(04 of15)
Although a line of burnt orange along the horizon marks where sunset has already occurred, most of the light in this image still comes ultimately from the Sun. High in the sky the bright disc of the Moon is shining with reflected sunlight, while a tiny smudge above the sea is sunlight reflecting from the dust and gas in the tail of Comet Panstarrs. Even the aurora’s ghostly curtains of glowing gas are ultimately powered by the ‘solar wind’ of subatomic particles given off by the Sun. Only the stars shine with their own light. (credit:Ingólfur Bjargmundsson)
Full view of Noctilucent cloud(05 of15)
Noctilucent clouds are formed of tiny ice crystals high in the atmosphere, around 80km above the ground. Their name means ‘night shining’ in Latin and they only become visible during deep twilight conditions. This is because they are not competing with the blue daytime sky and the more substantial clouds at lower altitudes. Here, despite the urban lights, they put on a spectacular display above the Pennine Hills of northern England. (credit:Mark Shaw)
Herbig-Haro Objects in the Pelican Nebula(06 of15)
The birth of new stars is a complex process which astronomers are still trying to understand in detail. One fascinating aspect of stellar formation is the production of jets of material which blast out from the poles of some new-born stars. Here, these jets, or ‘Herbig-Haro objects’, can be seen emerging from the thick dust and gas clouds of the Pelican Nebula, a stellar nursery in the constellation of Cygnus. (credit:Andre van der Hoeven)
Hunters Moon over the Alps(07 of15)
As the full Moon sinks in the west, the Sun rises in the east, lighting up the snow-capped Alpine horizon. Although both Moon and mountain are illuminated by sunlight in this image their different colours reveal the scattering effects of the Earth’s atmosphere on the white light of the Sun. The rays of the rising Sun pass through the full thickness of the air causing the blue, green and yellow light to be scattered in all directions and leaving only the red light to reach the distant mountains. The Moon is slightly higher in the sky, so its reflected sunlight is scattered less severely, and retains a warm yellow glow. (credit:Stefano De Rosa)
Leaning In(08 of15)
Familiar stars and constellations form a line rising up behind this windswept tree in Dartmoor National Park in the south-west of England. Just above the horizon is Sirius, the brightest star in the sky, followed by the unmistakeable outline of Orion the Hunter. Above this lies the triangular face of Taurus the Bull with the orange star Aldebaran, the disc of the Moon and the bright, compact cluster of the Pleiades. (credit:Anna Walls)
Northern Lights XXIII(09 of15)
A vast sweep of shimmering auroral light appears to mirror the shape of the frozen shoreline in this beautifully composed shot. To capture all of the different sources of light – the stars, the aurora and the streetlights of the distant towns – is a tricky balancing act requiring great skill of the photographer. (credit:Mike Curry)
Orion Nebula(10 of15)
Modern cameras can detect light which is too faint for our eyes to see and are able to distinguish levels of detail which are well beyond our own capabilities. In rendering this information as an image we can understand, astrophotographers must make practical and aesthetic choices about contrast, brightness and colour. Here, the photographer has chosen an unusually subdued palette of colours to represent the Orion Nebula, replacing the familiar riot of reds and magentas with subtle greys and salmon pinks. These emphasise the delicate structure of the nebula’s dust clouds. (credit:Nik Szymanek)
Photographers on the Rim of Myvatn Craters(11 of15)
The scale and majesty of astronomical and atmospheric phenomena are clearly shown in this dramatic scene. Although auroral displays have become more common, as the Sun nears the peak of its eleven-year cycle of activity in 2013, these hilltop observers were still lucky to witness such a spectacular example. (credit:James Woodend)
Receiving the Galatic Beam(12 of15)
Here, the photographer has managed to catch the moment when the Milky Way appears to line up with the giant 64m dish of the radio telescope at Parkes Observatory in Australia. As can be seen from the artificial lights around the telescope, light pollution is not a problem for radio astronomers. Radio and microwave interference is a big issue however, as it masks the faint natural emissions from distant objects in space. For this reason many radio observatories ban mobile phone use on their premises. (credit:Wayne England)
Solar Max(13 of15)
This full disc image of the Sun is a visual feast, with dark filaments rising up from the surface and back again seen face-on and the limb or edge of the Sun populated by the same type of loops, but this time from a side-on perspective. These features are known as prominences, perfectly contrasted against the background sky. The spectacle is topped off with the seething surface of the Sun all over, pockmarked with sunspots. These features are off-limits to the naked eye, but by tempering the Sun’s intense light with an appropriate filter, the glare is gone and beautiful turmoil is unveiled. (credit:Paul Haese)
The Night Photographer(14 of15)
This image captures the dedication of the committed astrophotographer: camping out in a remote location and spending hours waiting for the perfect shot of the night sky. Here, the photographer’s patience has been rewarded with the sight of a bright meteor streaking across the sky as it burns up high in the Earth’s atmosphere. (credit:Tommy Eliassen)
Venus Transit at the Black Sea(15 of15)
Transits of Venus are rare events, occurring in pairs eight years apart, with each pair separated by more than a century. But the transits themselves are brief, as Venus only takes around six hours to cross the disc of the Sun. In 2012 the transit was already well under way as the Sun rose over Europe. This gave the continent’s astronomers a brief window of opportunity to capture the black dot of Venus silhouetted in front of the Sun. (credit:Alexandru Conu)