Beyond this frosted leaf, the winter constellation Orion is highlighted. This photo was taken in Japan and the twinkling effect on the stars, caused by Earth's atmosphere which distorts the light, is artfully replicated by the ice crystals on the leaf, making the constellation easier to spot to my eyes and more dramatic in effect. However, this photo is made even more distinct because on the day it was taken, November 17th, a meteor sped by, which at this time of year are labeled the Leonids. Additionally in the Constellation Orion, the giant star Betelgeuse (the reddish tinted star) can be seen. Betelgeuse is large enough that it would stretch out to Jupiter's orbit if we replaced the Sun with it. The other extremely bright star in this photo is Sirius, which happens to be designated as the brightest star in the night sky and has a magnitude of -1.46. Sirius is actually a binary star, made up of Sirius A and B, but appears to the naked eye as one bright star. Sirius is located in the constellation Canis Major, which is commonly called big dog. Sirius was used by the Ancient Egyptians to mark the days of the flooding of the Nile and referred to the "dog days" of Summer for the Ancient Greeks.
No comments:
Post a Comment