Sky Away from the Lights

Selected as one of the Best 2012 Space Photos by the National Geographic News, the disc of our home galaxy, the Milky Way, is photographed from Mount Uludag above valleys of small towns and villages near Bursa, Turkey. This is the view from the third highest peak of Uludag, Karatas Peak (2536 meters). Less than a kilometer to the southeast (left) are Karatepe (2541 meters) and Uludag Peak with its distinct broken dome shape (2543 meters). Uludag is the highest mountain in the area and anywhere in a 400-km radius, thanks to its 50×20 km mono block granite rising from the lowlands of Marmara region. So, the foreground is only barren granite.

This photo was highly commended in Earth and Space category of Astrophotographer of the Year 2012 competition of Royal Museums Greenwich. It was also selected as one of Best Space Pictures of 2012 by the editors of National Geographic.