Like a Diamond in the Sky
Explanation:
A dark Sun
hung over Queensland, Australia on Wednesday morning
during a much anticipated
total solar eclipse.
Storm clouds threatened to spoil the
view along the northern coast, but minutes before
totality the clouds parted.
Streaming past the Moon's edge, the last direct rays
of sunlight produced a gorgeous
diamond ring effect in this scene
from Ellis Beach between Cairns and Port Douglas.
Winking out in a moment, the
diamond didn't last forever though.
The area was
plunged into darkness
for nearly 2 minutes as the
Moon's shadow
swept off shore toward Australia's
Great
Barrier Reef and out into the southern Pacific.
Ranging from 1/4000 to 1/15 seconds long, five separate exposures
were blended in the image to create a presentation similar
to the
breathtaking
visual experience of the eclipse.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
