Justin Ng of Singapore traveled to Mersing, Malaysia, where he captured and later created this beautiful composite image of a 22-degree halo around the moon and the starlit trail of our home galaxy, the Milky Way. The bright object on the lower right is the planet Venus. You can also see the planet Saturn visible near the top of the moon (there was a Saturn-moon conjunction that night). Plus, in this image, stargazers can pick out the star Arcturus (top right), fourth brightest star in the night sky and brightest light in the constellation Bootes. Justin wrote:
The Milky Way wasn’t really visible at this point, as the sky was still bright [ed. note: from the moon], but as the moon went lower, the Milky Way galaxy became visible gradually. The entire process was filmed as part of my 12-hour timelapse at this location.
Deborah Byrd created the EarthSky radio series in 1991 and founded EarthSky.org in 1994. Prior to that, she had worked for the University of Texas McDonald Observatory since 1976, and created and produced their Star Date radio series. Today, she serves as Editor-in-Chief of this website. She has won a galaxy of awards from the broadcasting and science communities, including having an asteroid named 3505 Byrd in her honor. In 2020, she won the Education Prize from the American Astronomical Society, the largest organization of professional astronomers in North America. A science communicator and educator since 1976, Byrd believes in science as a force for good in the world and a vital tool for the 21st century. "Being an EarthSky editor is like hosting a big global party for cool nature-lovers," she says.
Like what you read? Subscribe and receive daily news delivered to your inbox.
Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.