                        Astronomy Picture of the Day

    Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                                2021 July 19

                   Framed by Trees: A Window to the Galaxy
                   Image Credit & Copyright: Will Godward

   Explanation: The photographer had this shot in mind for some time. He
   knew that objects overhead are the brightest -- since their light is
   scattered the least by atmospheric air. He also that knew the core of
   our Milky Way Galaxy was just about straight up near midnight around
   this time of year in South Australia. Chasing his mental picture, he
   ventured deep inside the Kuipto Forest where tall radiata pines blocked
   out much of the sky -- but not in this clearing. There, through a
   window framed by trees, he captured his envisioned combination of local
   and distant nature. Sixteen exposures of both trees and the Milky Way
   Galaxy were recorded. Antares is the bright orange star to left of our
   Galaxy's central plane, while Alpha Centauri is the bright star just to
   the right of the image center. The direction toward our Galaxy's center
   is below Antares. Although in a few hours the Earth's rotation moved
   the Galactic plane up and to the left -- soon invisible behind the
   timber, his mental image was secured forever -- and is featured here.

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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
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