Mount Everest Star Trails
Explanation:
The highest peak on
planet Earth
is framed in this mountain and night skyscape.
On September 30, the digital stack of 240 sequential exposures
made with a camera fixed to a tripod at an Everest
Base Camp captured the sheer
north face
of the Himalayan mountain and foreground illuminated
by bright moonlight.
Taken over 1.5 hours, the sequence also recorded colorful star trails.
Reflecting the planet's daily rotation on its axis,
their motion is along gentle concentric arcs centered on the
south celestial pole,
a point well below the rugged horizon.
The color
of the trails actually indicates the temperatures of the stars.
Blueish hues are from hotter stars, and yellow to reddish hues
are from stars cooler than the Sun.
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.
