What Glows in the Night?

July 12, 2018

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Photographer: M. Taha Ghouchkanlou 
Summary Author: M. Taha Ghouchkanlou 

What glows in the night? On this night along the shore of the Gulf of Oman in Iran, several interesting glows were evident -- some near, but some far. The foreground surf glimmers blue with the light of bioluminescent plankton. Next out, Earth's atmosphere scatters light which acts to brighten opaque clouds near the horizon. Further out, the planet Venus glows brightly near the image center. If you slightly avert your eyes, you should be able to see a diagonal band of light as it merges with the glow of Venus. This band is the zodiacal light. At right center, the glow of the Milky Way dominates. Photo taken on November 26, 2016.

Photo Details: Camera: NIKON D810; Software: Adobe Photoshop CS6 (Windows); Exposure Time: 25.000s; Aperture: ƒ/2.8; ISO equivalent: 2500; Focal Length (35mm): 14.