This frames the rich area surrounding the Galactic Centre, which is located at top centre here amid the dark lane of dust and above a small diffuse ar
This frames the rich area surrounding the Galactic Centre, which is located at top centre here amid the dark lane of dust and above a small diffuse area of red nebulosity. To the left is the bright Sagittarius Starcloud, which contrasts with the dark lane that runs down the Milky Way. Nowhere else is there such a stark and sharp contrast between bright starclouds and dark lanes of dust. The star clouds show the yellowing effect of interstellar dust absorbing star light and reddening it. Amid the Sagittarius Starcloud is the small cluster NGC 6520 and the small black dark nebula B86. At bottom is the large open cluster Messier 6, the Butterfly Cluster, set in the dark dust lane. Below it near the bottom is the large Messier 7, aka Ptolemy's Cluster, set in a bright starcloud. The region of purplish nebulosity to the right of M6 is Rogers-Campbell-Whiteoak (RCW) 132. At bottom right are the nebulas NGC 6357, the Lobster, and NGC 6334, the Cat's Paw, both in Scorpius. This is a stack of just 6 x 2-minute exposures with the Canon RF135mm lens at f/2 and the Canon Ra at ISO 800. I shot this from Australia in March 2024, on one of my last nights of shooting just before dawn brightened the sky. The lens had the 95mm URTH NIght broadband filter on it. The lens focus is a wee bit soft here!
Size: 6720px × 4480px
Photo credit: © Alan Dyer / VWPics / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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