Zodiacal Light, the Andromeda Galaxy and the Milky Way

April 12, 2014

LuceZodiacale_High (2)

Photographers: Leonardo Orazi and Paolo Demaria; Leonardo's Web site
Summary Authors: Leonardo Orazi and Paolo Demaria

Shown above are two roughly parallel bands of faintly glowing light as observed from the snowy Italian Alps. The zodiacal light is at left while the Milky Way is on the right. They're enhanced here by a long exposure time. The zodiacal light is primarily the product of sunlight scattered in the forward direction by dust in the Earth's own orbit. Note that the Cygnus/Cephus region of the Milky Way is shown here. The Andromeda Galaxy (M31) is at top center. Photo taken on January 24, 2014.