Above the Clouds in Himalaya

Starry sky of a late November night above Himalayas. The scene was recorded from the World Heritage Sagarmatha National Park in Nepal. The photographer was along the main trail to the Everest Base Camp at altitude of about 4000 meters near Namche Bazaar, a gateway to the Himalayan mountain range. The famous peaks of Everest (8848 meters), Lhotse (the world’s 4th highest at 8516 meters), and the outstanding Ama Dablam (6812 m) at left, are on the left. In the middle of image Thamserku is the closest and largest mountain of the view (6623m) with the bright star Sirius to its upper right. The planet Mars is notable on left side of the mountain, close to M44 star cluster. Sagarmatha National Park contains a magnificent part of Himalayas and the southern half of Mount Everest. In fact the park varies in altitude from lowest point of 2845 m to 8848 m at the summit of Everest. Sagarmatha is a Sanskrit word, from sagar = “sky” and māthā = “head”, and is the modern Nepali name for Mount Everest.