Bejeweled Sky

The Milky Way is rising behind a grove of non-native Pine, Eucalyptus and Alnus trees in the Nilgiris. Diffusion of the starlight by a combination of thin high altitude clouds and a diffusion filter for part of the exposure brought out the colours of the stars. Mars and Saturn are the bright objects near the top left and bright reddish Antares (Greek for ‘Rival of Mars’) shines at the heart of Scorpius near the right of the frame. The passing lower altitude clouds are tinted by nearby sources of light pollution. The image is a single exposure tracked at half sidereal speed.

Technical Details: Nikon D800, Sigma Art 35mm f/1.4,  Skywatcher Star Adventurer, Kenko Pro Softon-A diffusion filter

35mm | 25s | f/2.2 | ISO – 1600