The Narrow Window of Darkness

The nearly full moon sets in the morning sky above the Athena Temple in Assos, a village in the Aegean seaside amid ancient ruins. Also known as Behramkale, it is located in Canakkale province of Turkey, close to the westernmost point of Asia. Assos was founded about 3000 years ago. The settlers built a Doric Temple to Athena on top of the crag in 530 BC. From this temple Hermias of Atarneus, a student of Plato, ruled Assos, when the city experienced its greatest prosperity. Aristotle also lived here and opened an Academy. Move the slider on the image to see all the labels and constellation lines. As noted by the photographer “The Moon was to set around the start of nautical twilight, so this was about the best sky available in that narrow window of darkness. This panorama covers the Ecliptic from Sagittarius to Taurus, with Jupiter in Aries and Uranus in western Pisces. Even Neptune can be picked in Aquarius, having completed one lap around the Sun since discovery.”