I made this for someone who is very special to me. You know who you are...
Better processing techniques to subtract air glow from the image has resulted in a clearer view of the natural colors of our galactic neighborhood. The bright central region of the Milky Way shines through the Scutum-Centaurus arm of the galaxy as the supermassive black hole Sagittarius A* lurks within. A trio of bright objects, from left to right: the planet Jupiter, the red giant star Antares, and the planet Mars also make an appearance in this image.
A look at the other end of the visible arm of the Milky Way as it fades to the northeast. Air glow and distant terrestrial light gives a colorful ambience to the scene as the brightest stars are mirrored in the water. Our neighboring Galaxy, Andromeda (M31), is seen at right.
The Big Dipper consists of the stars (some of them double stars) Dubhe, Merak, Phecda, Megrez, Alioth, Mizar, and Alkaid, named by ancient Arabic astronomers.
Milky WayStars
