Starry Sky above Crater Lake

The disc of our home galaxy, the Milky Way, arcs above above the Crater Lake in Oregon, Unites States. Northern constellations Ursa Major (Big Bear) and Ursa Minor (Little Bear) are at the image’s far left. The W-like figure of constellation Cassiopeia is visible in the beginning of the Milky Way arch over the left edge of the crater. Bright star Deneb and the notable red emission nebula known as the North America is visible at the upper center. Pan to the right to find Altair, the next bright star along the Milky Way. Over the right edge of the crater is the bright region of the Milky Way central bulge, hosted by the constellations Sagittarius and Scorpius. The bright stars near the right end is Antares at the heart of the scorpion. Crater Lake is one of the most notable natural attractions of north western US and although is seen like a small pond in this wide-angle panorama it is in fact a 10km wide volcanic caldera with maximum depth of about 600 meters (the deepest lake in the US). It is famous for its deep blue color and water clarity. The rim of the Crater Lake reaches altitude of 2400 meters. That’s why in this early summer view parts of the edge are still snow-covered. The caldera was formed about 7700 years ago by collapse of a volcano. The local tribe of Native Americans, who may have witnessed the collapse of volcano and the formation of the crater, have long regarded this lake a sacred spiritual site. Their legends tell of a battle between the sky god the god of the underworld and the volcano (Mount Mazama) was destroyed in the battle, creating Crater Lake. © Wally Pacholka