Spring Milkyway and
the Zodiacal Light

 

            

            
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 In late March
            the evening Zodiacl light is at its best, blazing in the western
            sky after sunset. In this image, the last of the Winter Milkyway
            is seen crossing the western sky, with the huge bright pyrimid
            of light extending upward, crossing the Milkyway and continueing
            onward past to the opposite horizon as the zodiacal band. The
            only sky glow here is the faint yellowish tint of distant Phoenix,
            on the left edge looking to the southwest. Orion is seen clearly
            in this image, and Taurus and the Pleiades is in the Zodical
            glow.

            
This is the first
            time I have stacked three fisheye shots to increase depth and
            lower noise. It worked pretty good.

Instrument:  Sigma 8mm f/3.5 fisheye lens at f/4
Platform:  Home Made GEM - Byers Starmaster Drive
Camera:  Hutech Modified Canon XTi @ ISO400
Exposure:  30m
Filters:  None
Location:  Happy Jack, Arizona
Elevation:  6800 ft.
Sky:  Seeing  8/10, Transparency 10/10
Outside Temperature:  45F
Processing Tools:  Photoshop CS2, Maxim DSLR
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