Startrails over Beijing Ancient Observatory
Explanation:
You
can take
a subway ride to visit this
observatory in Beijing, China
but you won't find any telescopes there.
Starting in the 1400s astronomers erected devices at the
Beijing
Ancient Observatory
site to enable them to accurately measure and track the positions of
naked-eye stars and planets.
Some of the large, ornate
astronomical
instruments
are still standing.
You can even see stars from the star observation platform today,
but now only the very brightest
celestial beacons are visible
against the city lights.
In this time series of exposures from a camera fixed to a tripod
to record graceful arcing startrails,
the brightest trail is actually the Moon.
Its broad arc is seen behind the ancient observatory's brass
armillary sphere.
Compare this picture
from the Beijing Ancient Observatory taken in September 2023 to
one taken in 1895.
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.
