Mars, Saturn, and the Southern Cross

A clear window between rain storms at the coast of Maui, Hawaii, gave an opportunity to TWAN photographer to capture this image of night sky over the Pacific Ocean, from the Haleakala National Park, near the town of Hana. Mars, the red planet, dominates the view, shining at its brightest, near its closest orbital position to the Earth (Mars opposition happens every 26 months). Saturn is also visible on the left, above stars of Socrpius. At the horizon, the Milky Way is rising in Centaurus. The Southern Cross, that rises only a few degrees high from this low-northern latitude, is on the lower right, next to the Carina Nebula. The ocean mist, the Milky Way at the horizon, and red airglow (natural emission of the Earth atmosphere) all made roles in this colorful capture of the night sky.