Sharing Knowledge and Learning is One of the Best Pleasures in the World
Sharing knowledge and learning something we love to do, is one of the best pleasures in the world! The image features the silhouette of one of my students @joao_rosario_godinho during a workshop of astrophotography, presented in Campinho village, located in the award winning @darkskyalqueva reserve, Portugal. While he is standing against the background core of our own galaxy, – the Milky Way – a white light that shines in the same direction belongs to a giant planet, Jupiter, which reached the Opposition during June month. If you would like to join one of my WORKSHOPS, for groups or as a Private experience, please visit my page Workshops and contact me for more informations.
PT: Partilhar o conhecimento ou aprender algo que gostamos de fazer é um dos melhores prazeres do mundo! A imagem revela a silhueta de um dos meus alunos @joao_rosario_godinho durante um workshop de astrofotografia na vila de Campinho, localizada na premiada reserva @darkskyalqueva, em Portugal. Enquanto o João prepara a sua câmara – num contra-luz provocado pelo brilho da Via Láctea – é visível uma luz branca que se destaca contra o coração galáctico. Essa luz pertence a um gigante gasoso, o Magnífico Júpiter, que no passado mês de Junho atingiu a Oposição, altura mais favorável para o fotografar e observar. Se gostaria de participar num dos meus workshops, e aprender tudo sobre a fotografia nocturna e as téncias mais avançadas, seja numa experiência de grupo ou como um workshop Privado one-to-one, visite minha página WORKSHOPS e entre em contato comigo para obter mais informações.
Milky Way Shines Above Pampilhosa da Serra
The image reveals a lovely summer scene where the arch of Milky Way is shinning bright above Pampilhosa da Serra. High in the sky, we can see Vega, from Lyra constellation, forming an asterism well know as the “Summer Triangle” with stars Deneb (from Cygnus) and Altair (from Aquila) located in the center of the photo. Below Deneb, a bright red emission nebula known as North America, is visible in violet hues, while in the opposite direction of the sky, the core of Milky Way galaxy is featuring many more red emission nebulae coming from deep sky objects like Lagoon, Trifid or Eagle nebula. Above Sagittarius constellation and against the galactic dusty center, Jupiter is shinning bright as a white light not farway from horizon. On the ground, a road is conducting our vision up to the infinite, while a few degrees to the left and above the horizon, another neighbour galaxy known as Andromeda, is timidly shinning as a difuse oblong shape.
PT: A imagem revela um cenário de verão encantador onde o brilho da Via Láctea se ergue acima da Pampilhosa da Serra. No alto do céu, podemos ver Vega, da constelação de Lyra, formando um asterismo bem conhecido como o “Triângulo de Verão”, com as estrelas Deneb (do Cisne) e Altair (da Águia) localizadas no centro da foto. Abaixo de Deneb, uma nebulosa de emissão vermelha brilhante conhecida como América do Norte, é visível em tons violetas, enquanto na direção oposta do céu, o núcleo da Via Láctea apresenta muitas nebulosas de emissão vermelha, proveniente de objetos do céu profundo como a Lagoa, Trífida, ou a nebulosa da Águia. Acima da constelação de Sagitário e contra o centro poeirento galáctico, Júpiter brilha como uma luz branca não distante do horizonte. Na paisagem, uma estrada conduz a nossa visão até o infinito, enquanto alguns graus à esquerda e acima do horizonte, outra galáxia vizinha conhecida como Andrómeda, está timidamente brilhando como uma forma difusa e oblonga.
Learning How to Photograph the Night Wonders of the Summer Sky
The image shows the Arch of Milky Way while a group of photographers and stargazers are enjoying the wonders of the summer sky in the Northern Hemisphere, Campinho, in Dark Sky® Alqueva Reserve. High in the sky, we can see a “blue bright” star with an apparent magnitude of 0,0 called Vega, serving as a middle reference in the magnitude system chart created for the first time in 150 B.C.E, by the greek astronomer Hipparchus. Vega, from Lyra constellation, is forming an asterism well know as the “Summer Triangle” with stars Deneb (from Cygnus) and Altair (from Aquila) located in the center of the image. Below Deneb, a bright red emission nebula known as North America, is visible in violet hues, while in the opposite direction of the sky, the core of Milky Way galaxy is featuring many more red emission nebulae coming from deep sky objects like Lagoon, Trifid or Eagle nebula. Above Sagittarius constellation and against the galactic dusty center, Jupiter is shinning bright as a white light. Following the same line we can find the red supergiant star Antares, from Scorpius constellations. Above the horizon in the right center, is shinning the Lord of the Rings, planet Saturn. Located in Portugal, Dark Sky® Alqueva reserve was the First Starlight Tourism Destination in the World, being awarded in 2019 with a “Tourism Oscar” from World Travel Awards, as Europe´s Responsible Tourism Award 2019.
PT: A imagem mostra o Arco da Via Láctea enquanto um grupo de fotógrafos e observadores de estrelas aprecia as maravilhas do céu de verão no Hemisfério Norte, a partir do Campinho, na reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva. No alto do céu, é possível ver uma estrela azulada e brilhante com uma magnitude aparente de 0.0, de nome Vega. Serve como uma referência intermédia na tabela do sistema de magnitudes criado pela primeira vez no ano 150 A.C, pelo astrónomo grego Hiparco. Vega, da constelação de Lyra, forma um asterismo conhecido como o “Triângulo de Verão” com as estrelas Deneb (Cisne) e Altair (da Águia), localizadas no centro da imagem. Abaixo de Deneb, uma nebulosa de emissão vermelha brilhante conhecida como nebulosa North America, é visível em tons violeta, enquanto na direção oposta do céu, o núcleo da Via Láctea apresenta muitas nebulosas de emissão vermelha, provenientes de objetos do céu profundo como as nebulosas da Lagoa, Trifid ou a nebulosa da Águia. Acima da constelação de Sagitário e contra o centro galáctico de poeira cósmica, Júpiter brilha intensamente como uma luz branca. Seguindo a mesma linha, podemos encontrar a estrela supergigante vermelha Antares, da constelação do Escorpião. Acima do horizonte no centro direito, podemos encontrar o apelidado “Senhor dos Anéis”, o planeta Saturno. Localizada em Portugal, a reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva foi o primeiro destino do mundo, a receber a certificação da Fundação Starlight, tendo sido premiado em 2019 com um “Oscar do Turismo” nos World Travel Awards, como Europe´s Responsible Tourism Award 2019.
Our Time Machine at the New Official Dark Sky® Alqueva Observatory in Cumeada
The official Dark Sky® Alqueva Observatory and headquarters, located in Cumeada – a small village near Reguengos de Monsaraz – is equipped with cutting-edge telescopes for solar and astronomical purposes. With a totally new design after being re-built and expanded in 2019, a roll-off roof observatory shows an open window to the Universe, providing a one life experience under the stars that you can´t skip! If you didn´t try it yet, you must include it as a priority on your bucket list. From observing the planets up to looking at the craters on the moon, everything is possible under an unpolluted sky with the guidance of a professional astronomer from Dark Sky® Alqueva. On moonless nights, you can dive deeper in the sky with your own eyes, embarking on a cosmic journey among nebulae, galaxies and the swarms of stars which rise above us in one of the finest skies in the world.
PT: O Observatório e Sede Oficial Dark Sky® Alqueva, localizado na Cumeada – uma pequena aldeia perto de Reguengos de Monsaraz – está equipado com telescópios de ponta para fins solares e astronómicos. Com um design totalmente novo, depois de ter sido reconstruído e expandido em 2019, um observatório de tecto retráctil mostra uma janela aberta para o Universo, proporcionando “a experiência de uma vida” sob um céu estrelado, algo que você não devia perder! Se ainda não tentou, inclua já esta experiência única como uma prioridade a realizar na sua “bucket list”. Desde observar os planetas até olhar as crateras na Lua, tudo é possível sob um céu não poluído, com a orientação de um astrónomo profissional do Dark Sky® Alqueva. Nas noites sem lua, você pode mergulhar mais fundo no céu com seus próprios olhos, embarcando em uma jornada cósmica entre nebulosas, galáxias e enxames de estrelas que se erguem acima de nós, num dos melhores céus do mundo.
Chasing Milky Way from Inside the New Official Dark Sky® Alqueva Observatory in Cumeada
The official Dark Sky® Alqueva Observatory and headquarters, located in Cumeada – a small village near Reguengos de Monsaraz – is equipped with cutting-edge telescopes for solar and astronomical purposes. With a totally new design after being re-built and expanded in 2019, a roll-off roof observatory shows an open window to the Universe, providing a one life experience under the stars that you can´t skip! If you didn´t try it yet, you must include it as a priority on your bucket list. From observing the planets up to looking at the craters on the moon, everything is possible under an unpolluted sky with the guidance of a professional astronomer from Dark Sky® Alqueva. On moonless nights, you can dive deeper in the sky with your own eyes, embarking on a cosmic journey among nebulae, galaxies and the swarms of stars which rise above us in one of the finest skies in the world.
PT: O Observatório e Sede Oficial Dark Sky® Alqueva, localizado na Cumeada – uma pequena aldeia perto de Reguengos de Monsaraz – está equipado com telescópios de ponta para fins solares e astronómicos. Com um design totalmente novo, depois de ter sido reconstruído e expandido em 2019, um observatório de tecto retráctil mostra uma janela aberta para o Universo, proporcionando “a experiência de uma vida” sob um céu estrelado, algo que você não devia perder! Se ainda não tentou, inclua já esta experiência única como uma prioridade a realizar na sua “bucket list”. Desde observar os planetas até olhar as crateras na Lua, tudo é possível sob um céu não poluído, com a orientação de um astrónomo profissional do Dark Sky® Alqueva. Nas noites sem lua, você pode mergulhar mais fundo no céu com seus próprios olhos, embarcando em uma jornada cósmica entre nebulosas, galáxias e enxames de estrelas que se erguem acima de nós, num dos melhores céus do mundo.
Full Dome View from the Official Dark Sky® Alqueva Observatory in Cumeada
The official Dark Sky® Alqueva Observatory and headquarters, located in Cumeada – a small village near Reguengos de Monsaraz – is equipped with cutting-edge telescopes for solar and astronomical purposes. With a totally new design after being re-built and expanded in 2019, a roll-off roof observatory shows an open window to the Universe, providing a one life experience under the stars that you can´t skip! If you didn´t try it yet, you must include it as a priority on your bucket list. From observing the planets up to looking at the craters on the moon, everything is possible under an unpolluted sky with the guidance of a professional astronomer from Dark Sky® Alqueva. On moonless nights, you can dive deeper in the sky with your own eyes, embarking on a cosmic journey among nebulae, galaxies and the swarms of stars which rise above us in one of the finest skies in the world. The image features a single shot captured with a full dome fish-eye lens.
PT: O Observatório e Sede Oficial Dark Sky® Alqueva, localizado na Cumeada – uma pequena aldeia perto de Reguengos de Monsaraz – está equipado com telescópios de ponta para fins solares e astronómicos. Com um design totalmente novo, depois de ter sido reconstruído e expandido em 2019, um observatório de tecto retráctil mostra uma janela aberta para o Universo, proporcionando “a experiência de uma vida” sob um céu estrelado, algo que você não devia perder! Se ainda não tentou, inclua já esta experiência única como uma prioridade a realizar na sua “bucket list”. Desde observar os planetas até olhar as crateras na Lua, tudo é possível sob um céu não poluído, com a orientação de um astrónomo profissional do Dark Sky® Alqueva. Nas noites sem lua, você pode mergulhar mais fundo no céu com seus próprios olhos, embarcando em uma jornada cósmica entre nebulosas, galáxias e enxames de estrelas que se erguem acima de nós, num dos melhores céus do mundo. A imagem revela uma visão full dome captada com uma lente fish-eye.
Our Cosmic Temple – Official Dark Sky® Alqueva Observatory in Cumeada
The official Dark Sky® Alqueva Observatory and headquarters, located in Cumeada – a small village near Reguengos de Monsaraz – is equipped with cutting-edge telescopes for solar and astronomical purposes. With a totally new design after being re-built and expanded in 2019, a roll-off roof observatory shows an open window to the Universe, providing a one life experience under the stars that you can´t skip! If you didn´t try it yet, you must include it as a priority on your bucket list. From observing the planets up to looking at the craters on the moon, everything is possible under an unpolluted sky with the guidance of a professional astronomer from Dark Sky® Alqueva. On moonless nights, you can dive deeper in the sky with your own eyes, embarking on a cosmic journey among nebulae, galaxies and the swarms of stars which rise above us in one of the finest skies in the world.
PT: O Observatório e Sede Oficial Dark Sky® Alqueva, localizado na Cumeada – uma pequena aldeia perto de Reguengos de Monsaraz – está equipado com telescópios de ponta para fins solares e astronómicos. Com um design totalmente novo, depois de ter sido reconstruído e expandido em 2019, um observatório de tecto retráctil mostra uma janela aberta para o Universo, proporcionando “a experiência de uma vida” sob um céu estrelado, algo que você não devia perder! Se ainda não tentou, inclua já esta experiência única como uma prioridade a realizar na sua “bucket list”. Desde observar os planetas até olhar as crateras na Lua, tudo é possível sob um céu não poluído, com a orientação de um astrónomo profissional do Dark Sky® Alqueva. Nas noites sem lua, você pode mergulhar mais fundo no céu com seus próprios olhos, embarcando em uma jornada cósmica entre nebulosas, galáxias e enxames de estrelas que se erguem acima de nós, num dos melhores céus do mundo.
Official Dark Sky® Alqueva Observatory in Cumeada Has a New Design in 2019
The official Dark Sky® Alqueva Observatory and headquarters, located in Cumeada – a small village near Reguengos de Monsaraz – is equipped with cutting-edge telescopes for solar and astronomical purposes. With a totally new design after being re-built and expanded in 2019, a roll-off roof observatory shows an open window to the Universe, providing a one life experience under the stars that you can´t skip! If you didn´t try it yet, you must include it as a priority on your bucket list. From observing the planets up to looking at the craters on the moon, everything is possible under an unpolluted sky with the guidance of a professional astronomer from Dark Sky® Alqueva. On moonless nights, you can dive deeper in the sky with your own eyes, embarking on a cosmic journey among nebulae, galaxies and the swarms of stars which rise above us in one of the finest skies in the world.
PT: O Observatório e Sede Oficial Dark Sky® Alqueva, localizado na Cumeada – uma pequena aldeia perto de Reguengos de Monsaraz – está equipado com telescópios de ponta para fins solares e astronómicos. Com um design totalmente novo, depois de ter sido reconstruído e expandido em 2019, um observatório de tecto retráctil mostra uma janela aberta para o Universo, proporcionando “a experiência de uma vida” sob um céu estrelado, algo que você não devia perder! Se ainda não tentou, inclua já esta experiência única como uma prioridade a realizar na sua “bucket list”. Desde observar os planetas até olhar as crateras na Lua, tudo é possível sob um céu não poluído, com a orientação de um astrónomo profissional do Dark Sky® Alqueva. Nas noites sem lua, você pode mergulhar mais fundo no céu com seus próprios olhos, embarcando em uma jornada cósmica entre nebulosas, galáxias e enxames de estrelas que se erguem acima de nós, num dos melhores céus do mundo.
A Spring Milky Way Rises in the Morning Twilight above Castro de Palheiros
The image reveals a panoramic scene of a Spring Milky Way rising in the morning twilight, above Castro de Palheiros, or Fragada of Castro. Located in the Natural Park of Tua Valley, near Mirandela, “is an imposing quartzite ridge that was being carved and built by the people of Murça region, between the beginning of the third millennium BC up to the present”, according to the Interpretative Center of this region. In the background, Vega star from Lyra constellation is visible in the left side of the image, above Cygnus constellation, while in the opposite direction, the supergiant star Antares, from Scorpius constelllation, is shinning in orange.
PT: A imagem revela uma cena panorâmica de uma Via Láctea primaveril a nascer ao crepúsculo matinal, acima de Castro de Palheiros ou Fragada de Castro. Localizada no Parque Natural do Vale do Tua, perto de Mirandela, “é uma imponente crista quartzítica que foi sendo esculpida e construída pelas populações da região de Murça, entre o início do terceiro milénio antes de Cristo até ao presente, segundo o Centro Interpretativo da região. Em pano de fundo, a estrela Vega da constelação Lyra é visível no lado esquerdo da imagem, acima da constelação do Cisne, enquanto na direção oposta, a estrela supergigante Antares, da constelação do Escorpião, brilha numa tonalidade alaranjada.
Technical details | Detalhes Técnicos
A panorama captured with a Nikon D810a | 26mm at f/2,8 | ISO4000 | Exp. 15 secs.
Spica and Arcturus are Shinning in a Starry Sky over Tua Valley
Located between Pombal de Ansiães and the place of S. Lourenço, this belvedere, allow us to enjoy a privileged night scene over the Tua Valley, a magnificent landscape marked by a nice cut of the mountains spread with vineyards, olive trees and cork oaks. Elegant curved lines drawn by Tua River are reflecting the faint light that remains visible from the abandoned old village of São Lourenço. Above the horizon, stars from the small constellation of Corvus are visible, while above them, the bright blue star Spica is shinning in Virgo constellation. In the top center, Arcturus from Bootes, is the brightest star visible on the image. Further to the right edge, we can find the open cluster “Melotte 111” in Coma Berenices.
PT: Localizado entre Pombal de Ansiães e o lugar de S. Lourenço, este miradouro, permite-nos desfrutar de uma noite privilegiada sobre o Vale do Tua, uma magnífica paisagem marcada por montanhas repletas de vinhas, oliveiras e sobreiros. Linhas curvas elegantes desenhadas pelo Rio Tua refletem a luz fraca que permanece visível da antiga vila abandonada de São Lourenço. Acima do horizonte, são visíveis as estrelas da pequena constelação Corvus, enquanto acima dela, a brilhante estrela azul Spica destaca-se na constelação da Virgem. Na parte superior central, Arcturus da constelação Bootes, é a estrela mais brilhante visível na imagem. Seguindo para a extremidade direita da imagem, podemos encontrar o enxame aberto “Melotte 111” em Coma Berenices.
Technical details | Detalhes Técnicos
A vertical panorama captured with a Nikon D810a | 24mm at f/2,8 | ISO3200 | Exp. 20 secs.
Colorful Vertical Panorama from Mitpze Ramon in Negev Desert
Captured from inside of Ramon Crater or “Makhtesh Ramon” in Israel’s Negev Desert, is the world’s largest “erosion cirque” – a landform which are only found in the Negev and its extension into Egypt’s Sinai desert created 220 million years ago when oceans covered the area. Located in the southern of Israel, Negev is a rocky desert with clay hills known for their fantastic red and yellowish colors, and cover more than half of the country. Nomadic life in the Negev dates back at least 4,000 years, and perhaps as much as 7,000 years according to some books, featuring a number of small Bedouin cities. This wide vertical panorama is featuring on the top an arched path of faint light from the winter Milky Way full of deep sky objects visible as a diffuse red/violet colors. In upper left corner we can find the Pleiades, a small group of bright blueish stars, also known as the seven sisters while below is visible the California Nebula. Orion Nebula and Rosette Nebula is also featuring on the center top edge, while further down to the right (below the Milky Way) the Beehive Cluster is shinning in a faint blue hue. On the ground, a path of light from a passing car light up the scene, resembling us the speed of light, the fastest thing we already know that can exist – at least until now – in our Universe. Above the horizon and the driest landscape of Isarel, lies the well known asterism of Ursa Major (Big Dipper), probably the easiest constellation recognisable in night time.
Biliblically and according to the Book of Genesis chapter 13, Abraham lived for a while in the Negev desert after being banished from Egypt. During the Exodus journey to the promised land, Moses sent twelve scouts into the Negev to assess the land and population. Later the northern part of biblical Negev was inhabited by the Tribe of Judah and the southern part of biblical Negev by the Tribe of Simeon. The Negev was later part of the Kingdom of Solomon (in its entirety, all the way to the Red Sea), and then, with varied extension to the south, part of the Kingdom of Judah. Source from wikipedia.
PT: Captada a partir da Cratera Ramon ou “Makhtesh Ramon” no Deserto de Negev, é o maior “cirque de erosão” do mundo – uma forma que só é encontrada no Negev e na sua extensão até ao deserto do Sinai, no Egipto – criado há 220 milhões de anos atrás. Localizado no sul de Israel, o Negev é um deserto rochoso com colinas de argila conhecidas por suas fantásticas cores vermelhas e amareladas, e cobre mais da metade do país. A vida nómade no Negev remonta pelo menos a 4.000 anos atrás, e talvez até 7.000 anos, de acordo com alguns livros, apresentando uma série de pequenas cidades beduínas. Este amplo panorama vertical apresenta no topo o caminho arqueado de luz fraca proveniente da Via Láctea de inverno, repleta de objetos do céu profundo, visíveis como um vermelho/violeta difuso. No canto superior esquerdo podemos encontrar as Pleiades, um pequeno grupo de estrelas azuladas brilhantes, também conhecidas como as Sete Irmãs, enquanto abaixo é visível a Nebulosa da Califórnia. A Nebulosa de Orion e a Nebulosa Roseta também são visíveis na extremo superior central da imagem, enquanto mais abaixo à direita (depois da Via Láctea), o aglomerado de Colmeia brilha em um tom azul fraco. No solo, um rasto de luz descrito por um carro iluminou toda a cena, relembrando-nos da velocidade da luz, a referência mais rápida que concebemos existir – pelo menos até hoje – no nosso Universo em evolução. Acima do horizonte e da paisagem mais seca de Isarel, encontra-se o bem conhecido asterismo da Ursa Maior, provavelmente a constelação mais fácil de reconhecer no céu nocturno.
Biblicamente e de acordo com o capítulo 13 do Livro de Gênesis, Abraão viveu por um tempo no deserto de Negev após ser banido do Egipto. Durante a viagem do Êxodo à terra prometida, Moisés enviou doze exploradores ao Negev para avaliar a terra e a população. Mais tarde, a parte norte do Negev bíblico foi habitada pela Tribo de Judá e a parte sul do Negev bíblico, pela Tribo de Simeão. O Negev foi mais tarde parte do Reino de Salomão (na sua totalidade, todo o caminho para o Mar Vermelho), e depois, com extensão variada para o sul, parte do Reino de Judá. Fonte da wikipedia.
Technical details | Detalhes Técnicos
A vertical panorama of 4 single frames with a Nikon D810a | 14mm at f/2,8 | ISO2500 | Exp. 25 secs.
A Natural View of the Night Sky from Ramon Crater in Negev Desert
Captured from inside of Ramon Crater or “Makhtesh Ramon” in Israel’s Negev Desert, is the world’s largest “erosion cirque” – a landform which are only found in the Negev and its extension into Egypt’s Sinai desert created 220 million years ago when oceans covered the area. Located in the southern of Israel, Negev is a rocky desert with clay hills known for their fantastic red and yellowish colors, and cover more than half of the country. Nomadic life in the Negev dates back at least 4,000 years, and perhaps as much as 7,000 years according to some books, featuring a number of small Bedouin cities. The image is showing a less saturated sky comparing to what our cameras can capture in order to show a more natural appearance of what our eyes can perceive during a dark night from that particular location. Featuring an arched path of faint light from the winter Milky Way, at left, we can find Sirius, the brightest star in the entire celestial sphere, and next to it, Orion constellation, with a diffusion glow from Orion Nebula. In the upper left corner, a group of small stars called Beehive cluster can also be seen. In the right center of the image, Auriga constellation and Taurus are visible, while the Pleiades, a small group of blueish stars, also known as the Seven Sisters, are shinning bright. The light pollution seen above the horizon is coming from Mitzpe Ramon.
Biliblically and according to the Book of Genesis chapter 13, Abraham lived for a while in the Negev desert after being banished from Egypt. During the Exodus journey to the promised land, Moses sent twelve scouts into the Negev to assess the land and population. Later the northern part of biblical Negev was inhabited by the Tribe of Judah and the southern part of biblical Negev by the Tribe of Simeon. The Negev was later part of the Kingdom of Solomon (in its entirety, all the way to the Red Sea), and then, with varied extension to the south, part of the Kingdom of Judah. Source from wikipedia.
PT: Captada a partir da Cratera Ramon ou “Makhtesh Ramon” no Deserto de Negev, é o maior “cirque de erosão” do mundo – uma forma que só é encontrada no Negev e na sua extensão até ao deserto do Sinai, no Egipto – criado há 220 milhões de anos atrás. Localizado no sul de Israel, o Negev é um deserto rochoso com colinas de argila conhecidas por suas fantásticas cores vermelhas e amareladas, e cobre mais da metade do país. A vida nómade no Negev remonta pelo menos a 4.000 anos atrás, e talvez até 7.000 anos, de acordo com alguns livros, apresentando uma série de pequenas cidades beduínas. A imagem revela um céu menos saturado em comparação com o que as nossas câmaras fotográficas podem captar, com o intuito de mostrar uma aparência mais natural e próxima do que os nossos olhos podem percepcionar durante uma noite escura, a partir deste local. Na imagem é possível ver o trajeto arqueado da luz fraca proveniente da Via Láctea de Inverno. À esquerda, podemos encontrar Sirius, a estrela mais brilhante em toda a esfera celeste, e ao lado desta, a constelação de Orion, com um brilho difuso da Nebulosa de Orion. No canto superior esquerdo, um grupo de pequenas estrelas chamado aglomerado da Colmeia também pode ser apreciado. No centro direito da imagem, a constelação de Auriga e Touro são visíveis, enquanto as Pleiades, um pequeno grupo de estrelas azuladas, também conhecidas como as Sete Irmãs, se destaca pelo seu brilho e forma particular. A poluição luminosa vista acima do horizonte é proveniente de Mitzpe Ramon..
Biblicamente e de acordo com o capítulo 13 do Livro de Gênesis, Abraão viveu por um tempo no deserto de Negev após ser banido do Egipto. Durante a viagem do Êxodo à terra prometida, Moisés enviou doze exploradores ao Negev para avaliar a terra e a população. Mais tarde, a parte norte do Negev bíblico foi habitada pela Tribo de Judá e a parte sul do Negev bíblico, pela Tribo de Simeão. O Negev foi mais tarde parte do Reino de Salomão (na sua totalidade, todo o caminho para o Mar Vermelho), e depois, com extensão variada para o sul, parte do Reino de Judá. Fonte da wikipedia.
Technical details | Detalhes Técnicos
A vertical panorama composed by 3 single frames with a Nikon D810a | 21mm at f/2,8 | ISO2500 | Exp. 25 secs.
Winter Constellations above Mitzpe Ramon in Negev Desert
Captured from inside of Ramon Crater or “Makhtesh Ramon” in Israel’s Negev Desert, is the world’s largest “erosion cirque” – a landform which are only found in the Negev and its extension into Egypt’s Sinai desert created 220 million years ago when oceans covered the area. Located in the southern of Israel, Negev is a rocky desert with clay hills known for their fantastic red and yellowish colors, and cover more than half of the country. Nomadic life in the Negev dates back at least 4,000 years, and perhaps as much as 7,000 years according to some books, featuring a number of small Bedouin cities. The image is featuring an arched path of faint light from the winter Milky Way full of deep sky objects visible as a diffuse red/violet colors. At left we can find Sirius, the brightest star in the entire celestial sphere, and next to it, Orion constellation, with the reddish emission coming from Orion Nebula. Above, we can also find Rosette Nebula. In the top right Auriga constellation and Taurus are visible, while the Pleiades, a small group of bright blueish stars, also known as the seven sisters, are set behind the horizon. The light pollution seen above the horizon is coming from Mitzpe Ramon.
Biliblically and according to the Book of Genesis chapter 13, Abraham lived for a while in the Negev desert after being banished from Egypt. During the Exodus journey to the promised land, Moses sent twelve scouts into the Negev to assess the land and population. Later the northern part of biblical Negev was inhabited by the Tribe of Judah and the southern part of biblical Negev by the Tribe of Simeon. The Negev was later part of the Kingdom of Solomon (in its entirety, all the way to the Red Sea), and then, with varied extension to the south, part of the Kingdom of Judah. Source from wikipedia.
PT: Captada a partir da Cratera Ramon ou “Makhtesh Ramon” no Deserto de Negev, é o maior “cirque de erosão” do mundo – uma forma que só é encontrada no Negev e na sua extensão até ao deserto do Sinai, no Egipto – criado há 220 milhões de anos atrás. Localizado no sul de Israel, o Negev é um deserto rochoso com colinas de argila conhecidas por suas fantásticas cores vermelhas e amareladas, e cobre mais da metade do país. A vida nómade no Negev remonta pelo menos a 4.000 anos atrás, e talvez até 7.000 anos, de acordo com alguns livros, apresentando uma série de pequenas cidades beduínas. A imagem mostra um caminho arqueado de luz fraca da Via Láctea de Inverno, cheia de objetos do céu profundo, visíveis como uma cor vermelha a violeta difusa. À esquerda, podemos encontrar Sirius, a estrela mais brilhante em toda a esfera celeste, e ao lado dela, a constelação de Orion, com a emissão avermelhada vinda da Nebulosa de Orion. Acima, também podemos encontrar a Nebulosa Roseta. No canto superior direito, a constelação de Auriga e Touro são visíveis, enquanto as Pleiades, um pequeno grupo de estrelas azuladas brilhantes, também conhecidas como as sete irmãs, se deitam por detrás do horizonte. A poluição luminosa visível acima do horizonte, provém de Mitzpe Ramon.
Biblicamente e de acordo com o capítulo 13 do Livro de Gênesis, Abraão viveu por um tempo no deserto de Negev após ser banido do Egipto. Durante a viagem do Êxodo à terra prometida, Moisés enviou doze exploradores ao Negev para avaliar a terra e a população. Mais tarde, a parte norte do Negev bíblico foi habitada pela Tribo de Judá e a parte sul do Negev bíblico, pela Tribo de Simeão. O Negev foi mais tarde parte do Reino de Salomão (na sua totalidade, todo o caminho para o Mar Vermelho), e depois, com extensão variada para o sul, parte do Reino de Judá. Fonte da wikipedia.
Technical details | Detalhes Técnicos
A mosaic of 6 single frames with a Nikon D810a | 21mm at f/2,8 | ISO2500 | Exp. 25 secs.
My Helmet´s Vision of the Milky Way
A large panoramic image of 9 single frames captured from edge-to- edge, shows the long path of our own galaxy, the Milky Way, as seen from the Northern Hemisphere. Besides the well know “Summer Triangle” with stars Deneb (from Cygnus), Altair (from Aquila) and Vega (from Lyra constellation), this colourful “helmet view” scene is featuring another larger and less usual triangle. This time, an asterism formed by planet Mars – the orange bright object in the upper left corner of the sky – the Andromeda Galaxy – the faint oblong object in upper right corner – as well as Vega, the blue bright star in the low center. The reddish hues spread around the Milky Way, are emission nebulae, stellar nurseries like North America Nebula (NGC7000). Located in Cygnus constellation, is an easily recognisable shape in the center of this lovely scene captured from Campinho, a small village in the hearth of Dark Sky® Alqueva reserve, Portugal.
PT: Uma grande panorâmica composta por 9 fotografias únicas, captadas de um horizonte ao outro, mostra o longo caminho da nossa própria galáxia, a Via Láctea, vista a partir do Hemisfério Norte. Além do já conhecido “Triângulo de Verão” formado pelas estrelas Deneb (do Cisne), Altair (da Águia) e Vega, da constelação Lira, esta colorida cena celeste que mais se assemelha à visão que teríamos a partir de um capacete, apresenta outro triângulo maior e menos comum. Desta vez, um asterismo formado pelo planeta Marte – o objeto laranja brilhante no canto superior esquerdo do céu – a galáxia de Andromeda – o objeto difuso e oblongo no canto superior direito – bem como Vega, a estrela azul brilhante perto do centro. Os tons avermelhados espalhados pela Via Láctea são nebulosas de emissão, berçários estelares como a Nebulosa América do Norte (NGC7000). Localizada na constelação do Cisne, é uma forma facilmente reconhecível no centro desta encantadora cena captada no Campinho, uma pequena vila no coração da reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva, Portugal.
A Panoramic Milky Way Above Azenhas do Guadiana
An impressive panoramic view shows the Milky Way rising above the hills from the fluvial beach of Azenhas do Guadiana, in Dark Sky® Alqueva Mértola. While a family of ducks are standing near the water in the center of the picture, two photographers are capturing the wonders of the night sky during a workshop of astrophotography. At the right side of this scenic view, the core of our galaxy is shinning bright and with it, some deep sky objects like the Lagoon Nebula, visible in red-violet immediately above the hill top.
Milky Way, Andromeda and a Dutch Sailboat
Visible below two galaxies, our Great Milky Way that stands bright at the top of this vertical panorama and Andromeda Galaxy, the diffuse elliptic shape shining near the center of the image, is Sem Fim boat. A Westlander sailboat built in 1913 in Holland. This type of boat, was used in the Dutch channels for the transport of goods, among them flowers. It was later transformed into house and bring it to Portugal. Now it navigates in Alqueva lake giving tourists the experience of sailing in the wind on board of a vintage boat. The image was captured during the XII edition of Dark Sky® Party Alqueva, held annually in Campinho, Dark Sky® Alqueva reserve.
Discovering the Sky Above with a Mobile Planetarium
While we can´t have yet a smartphone with enough quality to face the challenges of night photography, we could actually use it as a powerful mobile planetarium. Fortunately, nowadays, there are several free or purchased apps in the market capable of help you every time you are under a starry dark sky, turning your smartphone in an easy tool to identify celestial objects in real time. This image captured in Azenhas do Guadiana, Dark Sky® Alqueva Mértola, shows one of this moments, when a sky enthusiast was searching for planet Saturn, shinning bright near the core of the galaxy, was only 6º apart from the Lagoon Nebula (visible above the mountain, in the center of the image).
Under the Nature Our Roof is the Universe
Being under a starry sky always fascinated me since I was a child. Specially, when I was trying to reach the stars, setting my foots on the floor, just extending my arm while I was feeling and thinking in the fact that there is nothing separating us from outer space. Under the nature our roof is indeed the Universe itself and the most exciting thing, is the knowledge that let us know that we are an important part of it! The image shows a Milky Way rising in the background over Noudar Park, in Alqueva Dark Sky® Reserve, Portugal.
PT: Estar sob um céu estrelado sempre me fascinou desde que eu era criança. Especialmente, quando eu tentava alcançar as estrelas colocando os meus pés no chão, e estendendo o meu braço enquanto sentia e pensava no facto de que não há nada a separar-nos do espaço sideral acima. Sob a natureza, o nosso telhado é de facto o próprio Universo e a coisa mais excitante é o conhecimento que nos deixa saber que somos uma parte importante dele! A imagem mostra uma Via Láctea a nascer em pano de fundo, acima do Parque de Natureza de Noudar, na Reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva, em Portugal.
Under the Darkness the Sky is Anything but Black
Our eyes are not so good in distinguish colors under the darkness, but a simple DSLR camera can show us that the Universe is anything but black. The scene above captured from Noudar Park, in Dark Sky Alqueva Reserve, shows a colorful star field around the bright arm of the Milky Way also visible in the background behind a thin layer of clouds. Each color is directly related to the type and temperature of each star in a range that could features blue, white, yellow or even orange hues. The hottest stars, are showing a blue color, but in opposition, the coolest can reveal an orange-reddish color. The “Christmas balls” that seems to adorn this old olive tree in the foreground, are not only stars, but also planets, Like Mars and Saturn, shinning bright in the center of the tree in yellow-orange and white.
PT: Os nossos olhos não são muito bons a distinguir cores na escuridão da noite, mas uma simples câmara DSLR pode revelar-nos que o Universo é tudo menos preto. A cena acima captada no Parque de Noudar, Reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva, mostra-nos um colorido campo de estrelas ao redor do braço brilhante da Via Láctea, também visível em pano de fundo e envolta numa fina camada de nuvens. Cada cor está diretamente relacionada com o tipo e temperatura de cada estrela em um intervalo que pode apresentar tonalidades de azul, branco, amarelo ou até laranja. As estrelas mais quentes revelam uma cor azul, mas em oposição, as estrelas mais frias podem revelar uma cor laranja-avermelhada. As “bolas de Natal” que parecem enfeitar esta velha oliveira em primeiro plano, não são apenas estrelas, mas também planetas, como Marte e Saturno, brilhando ao centro da árvore numa tonalidade amarelo-alaranjado e branco.
Milky Way Rising Over Noudar Park
The image and short time lapse clip shows the Milky Way rising over Noudar Park, in Alqueva Dark Sky® Reserve, Portugal.
PT: A Na imagem acima é possível ver o nascer da Via Láctea por detrás da paisagem do Parque de Natureza de Noudar.
An Eclipsed Moon with Mars, Milky Way with Saturn, and a Satellite near Jupiter
Captured 15 minutes after the end of totality during the longest Total Lunar Eclipse of the Century, the scene shows the bright light of a partially eclipsed Moon very close to the red planet Mars. With the galactic core featuring planet Saturn above Sagittarius, the Milky Way is well visible crossing the center of the picture, while above its arched shape, a flare from Satellite FORMOSAT-2 (ROCSAT 2) showed up high in the sky not faraway – in this wide angle view – from the bright light of planet Jupiter, seen near the right edge of the photo. This single shot was captured from Campinho, Dark Sky® Alqueva, Portugal.
PT: Captada 15 minutos após o final da totalidade durante o mais longo Eclipse Lunar Total do Século, a imagem mostra a luz brilhante de uma Lua parcialmente eclipsada muito próxima do planeta vermelho, Marte. Com o planeta Saturno no centro galáctico, a Via Láctea arqueada cruza o centro da imagem à medida que um flare do Satélite FORMOSAT-2 (ROCSAT 2) se trona visível por instantes, bem alto no céu. Por fim, à direita deste e já próximo do extremo da foto, é possível ver a luz brilhante do planeta Júpiter. Este disparo único foi captado no Campinho, Dark Sky® Alqueva, Portugal.
A Golden Meteor
When spending a few nights enjoying the wonders of a starry sky you can suddenly be surprised with a sporadic meteor. You can make a wish, or simply scream “wooow” and smile to the sky above. The image shows a bright gold one captured in a single frame taken in Noudar Park, Alqueva Dark Sky® Reserve, from a total sequence of shots of about 4h. At the right side of the tree, a faint white light from the Milky Way is also visible.
PT: Ao passarmos algumas noites desfrutando das maravilhas de um céu estrelado, por vezes podemos ser repentinamente surpreendidos com um meteoro esporádico brilhante. A imagem mostra assim um desses momentos, em que um brilhante meteoro dourado foi captado num single frame obtido no Parque de Natureza de Noudar, Reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva, a partir de uma sequência total de disparos de cerca de 4 horas. Em pano de fundo e à direita da árvore, é ainda visível a suave presença esbranquiçada da Via Láctea.
A Spring Milky Way above Campinho
The image shows the Arch of Milky Way as seen during a Spring night in the Northern Hemisphere, Campinho, in Dark Sky® Alqueva Reserve. High in the sky, we can see a “blue bright” star with an apparent magnitude of 0,0 called Vega, serving as a middle reference in the magnitude system chart created for the first time in 150 B.C.E, by the greek astronomer Hipparchus. Vega, from Lyra constellation, is forming an asterism well know as the “Summer Triangle” with stars Deneb (from Cygnus) and Altair (from Aquila). At the right center of the picture, planet Mars and Saturn are shinning near the core of the Galaxy. Following the same line we can find the red supergiant star Antares, from Scorpius constellations, and the bright planet Jupiter. Above the horizon is visible a mix of yellow/greenish airglow with the lights from Aldeia da Luz, and below, a water mirror from the largest manmade lake in Europa, The Great Lake Alqueva.
PT: A imagem mostra o Arco da Via Láctea como visto durante uma noite de primavera no Hemisfério Norte, na região do Campinho, Reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva. No alto do céu, é possível ver uma estrela azulada e brilhante com uma magnitude aparente de 0.0, de nome Vega. Serve como uma referência intermédia na tabela do sistema de magnitudes criado pela primeira vez no 150 A.C, pelo astrónomo grego Hiparco. Vega, da constelação de Lyra, forma um asterismo conhecido como o “Triângulo de Verão” com as estrelas Deneb (Cisne) e Altair (da Águia). No centro direito da imagem, o planeta Marte e Saturno brilham perto do centro da galáxia. Seguindo a mesma linha, podemos encontrar a estrela supergigante vermelha Antares, da constelações do Escorpião, terminando no extremo direito da imagem com o brilho intenso do planeta Júpiter. Um pouco acima do horizonte é visível uma tonalidade de amarelo/esverdeado proveniente da subtil presença de airglow (Luminescência Foto-química) que se mistura ainda com algumas luzes da Aldeia da Luz, já bem junto ao horizonte deste panorama. Logo abaixo, o enorme espelho de água do maior lago artificial da Europa Ocidental, o Grande Lago Alqueva, reflecte assim algumas das estrelas que salpicam o firmamento do Dark Sky® Alqueva.
The Faint Arch of the Winter Milky Way above Pulo do Lobo
A night scene captured in Pulo do Lobo, Dark Sky® Alqueva Mértola, shows an arched path of faint light from the winter Milky Way full of deep sky objects visible as a pale diffuse red/violet colors. From left to right, we can find Sirius, the brightest star in the entire celestial sphere and at the right side, the reddish emission coming from Rosette and Orion Nebula, with Lambda Orionis, Barnard´s Loop, Horse Head and M42 visible. In center of the image, Hyades open cluster are close to Pleiades, , or the seven sisters, a small group of bright blueish stars. Immediately above Pleiades, we can find California nebula, a red emission nebula like Heart and Soul nebula, located further right following the path of light of Milky Way arm. Pulo do Lobo is the most dramatic stretch of Guadiana River, located about 18 kms north of Mértola, where the Guadiana river bed is reduced to a narrow strait a few meters wide, followed by a small waterfall with about 4m high. The margins on this site are tall and stony, and so tight that they have given rise to a legend that says that a wolf in hunting could transports them in a jump.
PT: Uma cena nocturna captada no Pulo do Lobo, Dark Sky® Alqueva Mértola, mostra o caminho arqueado e ténue da Via Láctea invernal, cheia de objectos do céu profundo, visíveis com tonalidades difusas vermelho/violeta. Da esquerda para a direita, podemos encontrar Sirius, a estrela mais brilhante em toda a esfera celeste, seguindo-se a emissão avermelhada proveniente da nebulosa da Roseta e de Orion, onde ainda se destacam alguns objectos como Lambda Orionis, Barnard´s Loop, Horse Head e M42.No centro da imagem, o aglomerado aberto de Hyades fica perto das Pleiades, ou as popularmente designadas Sete Irmãs, um pequeno grupo de estrelas jovens e brilhantes de tonalidade azulada por ainda se encontrarem muito quentes. Imediatamente acima das Pleiades, podemos encontrar a nebulosa da Califórnia, uma nebulosa de emissão vermelha como a nebulosa do Coração e da Alma, localizada mais adiante, seguindo o caminho da luz do braço da Via Láctea. O Pulo do Lobo é o mais dramático trecho do rio Guadiana, situado a cerca de 18 kms a Norte de Mértola, onde o leito do rio Guadiana fica reduzido a um estreito rápido com poucos metros de largura, seguido de uma pequena queda de água com cerca de 4m de altura. As margens neste local apresentam-se altas e pedregosas, e tão apertadas que deram origem a uma lenda que afirma que um lobo em caça as transpõe em um salto.
Zodiacal Light and Winter Constellations above Pulo do Lobo
A night scene captured in Pulo do Lobo, Dark Sky® Alqueva Mértola, shows a view of the winter Milky Way full of deep sky objects shinning bright with a diffuse red/violet colors. From top right corner to the bottom, we can find California nebula and Pleiades, a bright blueish star cluster, while below is visible all the reddish emission coming from Orion, with Lambda Orionis, Barnard´s Loop, Horse Head and M42 nebulae surrounding the main brightest stars of Orion constellation. At the left side not far away from Orion, a violet emission is shinning from Rosette nebula. At left edge of the image and above the horizon is visible a faint white light that seems to point to Beehive star cluster, known as Zodiacal light, is the sunlight scattered by interplanetary dust. Most of this dust is orbiting the Sun in about the ecliptic plane.
Pulo do Lobo is the most dramatic stretch of Guadiana River, located about 18 kms north of Mértola, where the Guadiana river bed is reduced to a narrow strait a few meters wide, followed by a small waterfall with about 4m high. The margins on this site are tall and stony, and so tight that they have given rise to a legend that says that a wolf in hunting could transports them in a jump.
PT: Este cenário nocturno captado no Pulo do Lobo, na Reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva Mértola, mostra uma visão da Via Láctea de inverno repleta de objectos do céu profundo que se destacam com tonalidades difusas vermelho/violeta ao longo do caminho descrito pela nossa galáxia. Do topo direito em direcção ao horizonte, é possível ver a Nebulosa da Califórnia e à direita as Pleiades, um aglomerado estelar azul brilhante. Logo abaixo é visível toda a emissão avermelhada proveniente de Orion, com diversos objectos como Lambda Orionis, Barnard´s Loop, Horse Head e a nebulosa M42 circundando as principais estrelas brilhantes da constelação de Orion. No lado esquerdo, não longe de Orion, a nebulosa da Roseta é visível como uma emissão violeta brilhante. No extremo esquerdo da imagem e logo acima do horizonte, uma fraca emissão esbranquiçada que parece incidir na direcção do aglomerado estelar Beehive, é conhecida como a Luz Zodiacal. Trata-se da luz solar dispersa pela poeira interplanetária. A maior parte dessa poeira está orbitando o Sol em torno do plano eclíptico.
O Pulo do Lobo é o mais dramático trecho do rio Guadiana, situado a cerca de 18 kms a Norte de Mértola, onde o leito do rio Guadiana fica reduzido a um estreito rápido com poucos metros de largura, seguido de uma pequena queda de água com cerca de 4m de altura. As margens neste local apresentam-se altas e pedregosas, e tão apertadas que deram origem a uma lenda que afirma que um lobo em caça as transpõe em um salto.
A Panorama of the Deep Sky Objects in the Winter Milky Way above Pulo do Lobo
A vertical panorama captured in Pulo do Lobo, Dark Sky® Alqueva Mértola, shows the path of the winter Milky Way full of deep sky objects visible as a colorful diffuse red/violet colors. Above the horizon, we can find Sirius, the brightest star in the entire celestial sphere and immediately above, the reddish emission coming from Rosette and Orion Nebula, with Lambda Orionis, Barnard´s Loop, Horse Head and M42 visible. Following to the right center of the image, Hyades open cluster are close to Pleiades, or the seven sisters, a small group of bright blueish stars. Going further high on the image, we can find California nebula, and in the way to the top, we can find the red emission from Heart and Soul nebula, finishing in the right top corner with the diffuse elipse shape from Andromeda galaxy. Pulo do Lobo is the most dramatic stretch of Guadiana River, located about 18 kms north of Mértola, where the Guadiana river bed is reduced to a narrow strait a few meters wide, followed by a small waterfall with about 4m high. The margins on this site are tall and stony, and so tight that they have given rise to a legend that says that a wolf in hunting could transports them in a jump.
PT: Um panorama vertical composto por single shots sem qualquer tracking captados no Pulo do Lobo, no Dark Sky® Alqueva Mértola, mostra a trajetória da Via Láctea invernal, repleta de objetos do céu profundo, visíveis como cores vermelhas / violetas difusas. Acima do horizonte, podemos encontrar Sirius, a estrela mais brilhante em toda a esfera celeste e imediatamente acima, a emissão avermelhada vinda da Nebulosa Rosette e Orion, com Lambda Orionis, Barnard´s Loop, Horse Head e M42 visíveis. Seguindo para o centro direito da imagem, o aglomerado aberto de Hyades fica próximo das do enxame aberto das Pleiades, ou das sete irmãs, um pequeno grupo de estrelas azuladas brilhantes. Seguindo mais alto na imagem, podemos encontrar a nebulosa da Califórnia, e no caminho para o extremo superior, podemos encontrar a emissão vermelha da nebulosa Heart & Soul, terminando no canto superior direito com a presença de uma luz difusa em forma de elipse, proveniente da galáxia de Andrómeda. O Pulo do Lobo é o troço mais dramático do rio Guadiana, localizado a cerca de 18 kms a norte de Mértola, onde o leito do rio Guadiana é reduzido a um estreito de poucos metros de largura, seguido de uma pequena cascata com cerca de 4m de altura. As margens deste local são altas e pedregosas, e tão estreitas que deram origem a uma lenda que diz que um lobo em caça poderia transpô-las em um único salto.
Big Dipper, Red Airglow and Milky Way in a Panoramic view from Mértola
A panoramic view from Mértola, Dark Sky® Alqueva, shows a celestial scene captured in a night where the presence of a reddish-yellow airglow was very active. In the background, the well know asterism from Big Dipper or Ursa Major, is shinning at the left edge, while in the opposite direction of the image a faint light from the Milky Way is visible behind the layer of airglow. Sirius, the brightest star in the entire celestial sphere is well spotted and above it – in the right top corner – the H-alfa emission coming from Rosette and Orion Nebula are noticeable in red, with Lambda Orionis, Barnard´s Loop, Horse Head and M42 well visible. Below, a partial path of Guadiana river is reflecting the color of the sky.
All Sky View – A Winter Milky Way Crossing the Zenith from Pulo do Lobo
A fish-eye “full dome” scene captured in Pulo do Lobo, Dark Sky® Alqueva Mértola, shows the faint path of light from the winter Milky Way crossing the sky near the zenith, above the most dramatic stretch of Guadiana River, located about 18 kms north of Mértola, is where the Guadiana river bed is reduced to a narrow strait a few meters wide, followed by a small waterfall with about 4m high. The margins on this site are tall and stony, and so tight that they have given rise to a legend that says that a wolf in hunting could transports them in a jump.
PT: Uma visão fish-eye “full-dome” de 180º captada no Pulo do Lobo, Dark Sky® Alqueva Mértola, mostra o ténue caminho de luz da Via Láctea de inverno cruzando o Zénite, acima do mais dramático trecho do rio Guadiana, situado a cerca de 18 kms a Norte de Mértola, onde o leito do rio Guadiana fica reduzido a um estreito rápido com poucos metros de largura, seguido de uma pequena queda de água com cerca de 4m de altura. As margens neste local apresentam-se altas e pedregosas, e tão apertadas que deram origem a uma lenda que afirma que um lobo em caça as transpõe em um salto.
A Portrait of the Winter Milky Way above Pulo do Lobo
A night scene captured in Pulo do Lobo, Dark Sky® Alqueva Mértola, shows a path of faint light from the winter Milky Way full of deep sky objects visible as a diffuse red/violet colors. From left to right, we can find Sirius, the brightest star in the entire celestial sphere and above it, the reddish emission coming from Rosette and Orion Nebula, with Lambda Orionis, Barnard´s Loop, Horse Head and M42 visible. In the top right edge of image, California nebula is still visible and immediately below, the Pleiades star cluster, or the seven sisters, a small group of bright blueish stars.
Pulo do Lobo is the most dramatic stretch of Guadiana River, located about 18 kms north of Mértola, where the Guadiana river bed is reduced to a narrow strait a few meters wide, followed by a small waterfall with about 4m high. The margins on this site are tall and stony, and so tight that they have given rise to a legend that says that a wolf in hunting could transports them in a jump.
PT: Uma cena nocturna captada no Pulo do Lobo, Dark Sky® Alqueva Mértola, mostra o caminho ténue da Via Láctea invernal, cheia de objectos do céu profundo, visíveis com tonalidades difusas vermelho/violeta. Da esquerda para a direita, podemos encontrar Sirius, a estrela mais brilhante em toda a esfera celeste e acima dela, a emissão avermelhada proveniente da nebulosa da Roseta e de Orion, onde ainda se destacam alguns objectos como Lambda Orionis, Barnard´s Loop, Horse Head e M42. No canto superior direito da imagem, a nebulosa da Califórnia ainda é visível e logo abaixo, o aglomerado estelar das Pleiades, ou “Sete Irmãs”, um pequeno grupo de estrelas brilhantes e azuladas, por serem jovens.
O Pulo do Lobo é o mais dramático trecho do rio Guadiana, situado a cerca de 18 kms a Norte de Mértola, onde o leito do rio Guadiana fica reduzido a um estreito rápido com poucos metros de largura, seguido de uma pequena queda de água com cerca de 4m de altura. As margens neste local apresentam-se altas e pedregosas, e tão apertadas que deram origem a uma lenda que afirma que um lobo em caça as transpõe em um salto.
Full Dome View of Pulo do Lobo in a Winter Night
A fish-eye “full dome” scene captured in Pulo do Lobo, Dark Sky® Alqueva Mértola, shows the faint path of light from the winter Milky Way above the most dramatic stretch of Guadiana River, located about 18 kms north of Mértola, is where the Guadiana river bed is reduced to a narrow strait a few meters wide, followed by a small waterfall with about 4m high. The margins on this site are tall and stony, and so tight that they have given rise to a legend that says that a wolf in hunting could transports them in a jump.
PT: Uma visão fish-eye “full-dome” de 180º captada no Pulo do Lobo, Dark Sky® Alqueva Mértola, mostra o ténue caminho de luz da Via Láctea de inverno, acima do mais dramático trecho do rio Guadiana, situado a cerca de 18 kms a Norte de Mértola, onde o leito do rio Guadiana fica reduzido a um estreito rápido com poucos metros de largura, seguido de uma pequena queda de água com cerca de 4m de altura. As margens neste local apresentam-se altas e pedregosas, e tão apertadas que deram origem a uma lenda que afirma que um lobo em caça as transpõe em um salto.
A Galactic Tree Under the Stars
A path of light illuminates the foreground behind a dead tree that by illusion, seems to be part of the galactic arm of our Milky Way galaxy. This magical and charm scenario under the stars was captured in Noudar Park, Alqueva Dark Sky® Reserve, Barrancos.
PT: Um caminho de luz ilumina o primeiro plano por detrás de uma árvore morta que, por ilusão, parece fazer parte do braço galáctico da nossa Via Láctea. Este cenário mágico e de encanto sob a luz das estrelas foi captado no Parque de Natureza de Noudar, Dark Sky® Alqueva, Barrancos.
A Spring Milky Way Shines above Monsaraz
With the arrival of Spring in the Northern Hemisphere the central region of Milky Way starts to be visible right above the horizon before Dawn, with the certain of getting better and better in the upcoming months, reaching it´s highest visibility to the naked eye in the middle of summer with the core of Milky Way facing south, and being well visible in the beginning of the night from a Dark Sky location. This scene captured in the spring equinox from Monsaraz village, in Dark Sky® Alqueva, shows a green field with small yellow flowers while in the sky, planets Saturn and Mars are shining against the the core of our galaxy, being Mars very close to the Lagoon nebula. In the upper right corner of the image, the bright light that cauth our attention is from the planet Jupiter.
PT: Com a chegada da primavera no Hemisfério Norte, a região central da Via Láctea começa a ficar visível logo acima do horizonte pouco tempo antes do nascer do dia, com a certeza de se encontrar cada vez melhor nos próximos meses, atingindo a sua maior visibilidade a olho nu nos meses de verão, com o núcleo da Via Láctea voltado a sul e sendo bem visível no início da noite a partir de um local escuro. Este cenário celeste captado no equinócio da primavera a partir de Monsaraz, no Dark Sky® Alqueva, mostra um campo verde com pequenas flores amarelas enquanto no céu, os planetas Saturno e Marte brilham contra o núcleo da nossa galáxia, estando Marte muito perto da Nebulosa da Lagoa. No canto superior direito da imagem, a luz brilhante que chama a nossa atenção é do planeta Júpiter.
Cumeada Observatory, a Window to the Universe
After astronomical twilight ends, a retractable roof observatory shows an open window to the Universe, with the core of Milky Way Galaxy shinning bright against a variety of different telescopes, advanced optical equipment for visual and astrophotography purposes, available in Cumeada Observatory, the headquarter of Dark Sky® Alqueva Reserve – the First Starlight Tourism Destination in the World – located in Reguengos de Monsaraz, Portugal. The recovered building is an old primary school rehabilitated by the Municipality of Reguengos, to receive the official Observatory of Dark Sky® Alqueva
PT: Após o final do crepúsculo astronómico, um observatório de tecto retráctil mostra uma janela aberta para o Universo, com o núcleo da Via Láctea brilhando contra uma variedade de telescópios diferentes, equipamentos ópticos avançados para fins visuais e astrofotográficos, disponíveis no Observatório da Cumeada, sede oficial da Reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva – o Primeiro Destino Turístico do Mundo Starlight – localizado em Reguengos de Monsaraz, Portugal. O edifício recuperado é uma antiga escola primária reabilitada pelo município de Reguengos, para receber o Observatório oficial de Dark Sky® Alqueva.
Cumeada Observatory and the Winter Sky
After astronomical twilight ends, a retractable roof observatory shows an open window to the Universe, with the Winter Sky shinning bright against a variety of different telescopes, advanced optical equipment for visual and astrophotography purposes, available in Cumeada Observatory, the headquarter of Dark Sky® Alqueva Reserve – the First Starlight Tourism Destination in the World – located in Reguengos de Monsaraz, Portugal. The recovered building is an old primary school rehabilitated by the Municipality of Reguengos, to receive the official Observatory of Dark Sky® Alqueva
PT: Após o final do crepúsculo astronómico, um observatório de tecto retráctil mostra uma janela aberta para o Universo, com o Céu de Inverno brilhando contra uma variedade de telescópios diferentes, equipamentos ópticos avançados para fins visuais e astrofotográficos, disponíveis no Observatório da Cumeada, sede oficial da Reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva – o Primeiro Destino Turístico do Mundo Starlight – localizado em Reguengos de Monsaraz, Portugal. O edifício recuperado é uma antiga escola primária reabilitada pelo município de Reguengos, para receber o Observatório oficial de Dark Sky® Alqueva.
Oficial Observatory of Dark Sky Alqueva Working in a Winter Night from Miguel Claro on Vimeo.
Working at Cumeada Observatory, a Window to the Universe
After astronomical twilight ends, a retractable roof observatory shows an open window to the Universe, with the core of Milky Way Galaxy shinning bright against a variety of different telescopes, advanced optical equipment for visual and astrophotography purposes, available in Cumeada Observatory, the headquarter of Dark Sky® Alqueva Reserve – the First Starlight Tourism Destination in the World – located in Reguengos de Monsaraz, Portugal. The recovered building is an old primary school rehabilitated by the Municipality of Reguengos, to receive the official Observatory of Dark Sky® Alqueva
PT: Após o final do crepúsculo astronómico, um observatório de tecto retráctil mostra uma janela aberta para o Universo, com o núcleo da Via Láctea brilhando contra uma variedade de telescópios diferentes, equipamentos ópticos avançados para fins visuais e astrofotográficos, disponíveis no Observatório da Cumeada, sede oficial da Reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva – o Primeiro Destino Turístico do Mundo Starlight – localizado em Reguengos de Monsaraz, Portugal. O edifício recuperado é uma antiga escola primária reabilitada pelo município de Reguengos, para receber o Observatório oficial de Dark Sky® Alqueva.
Bright Milky Way Mixed with Airglow and Clouds above Mina de São Domingos
A wide view of the Milky Way with planet Saturn shinning against the galaxy core above Scorpius constellation, while in the opposite direction, bright star Arcturus is setting behind a layer of orange clouds. In the background horizon, a smooth presence of green airglow is also mixed with a starry sky. In the top right corner of the image, a pink/red emission from North America Nebula (NGC7000) is well visible near Deneb star, forming a perfect triangle with the blue star Vega (top center) and Altair star (left center). This mosaic of the Milky Way was captured above a puddle of acid water from Achada do Gamo, that was – since the beginning of modern mining activities in the São Domingos Mine – the center of metallurgical activities on extracted minerals. Already during the 20th century, between the 30s and 40s, a new direction of industrial exploration took place: the sulfur, however much valued, began to be extracted from the copper pyrites through furnaces (Orkla process) in two plants installed in the Achada do Gamo during the years of 1934 and 1943.
São Domingos Mine is located in Baixo Alentejo, about 240 km from Lisbon, in the municipality of Mértola, which recently joined the Dark Sky® Alqueva Route for the great quality of the night sky. The São Domingos mining area is part of the Iberian Pyrite Range and is a decisive source of basic metals (S, Zn, Pb, Sn, Ag, Au, Fe, Co, Cd, etc.) and other elements such as sulfur (S). It has been a sought after place for the extraction of ores since antiquity, with evidence of gold, silver and copper mining in the pre-Roman and Roman times. The pyritic deposit of São Domingos (St. Dominic) was explored in various historical periods, namely: for several centuries of the first millennium BC (Eastern period), during the period between 14 BC and 395 AD (Roman period), during the Islamic period and during the modern period that was initiated in 1858 for the extraction of copper, gold and silver and was maintained until 1966, the year in which the reserves were considered exhausted. During this period, the work was done in the open air up to 120 meters deep, with work continued through wells and galleries up to 400 meters. Over 108 years of regular exploration, more than 20 million tons of materials were removed from the site, producing about 14.7 million tons of waste accumulated in heaps up to 14 meters high with a dozen different materials such as pyrite , gossan, slag, ash, iron oxides, barren rock, sludge, debris, etc. The areas of heaps, slag and channels of water, give the landscape a “lunar” aspect. The heaps are composed of different materials with high levels of metals, such as slag and ash, whose leaching through the rainwater leads to the production of acid mine drainage, usually with an ocher or reddish color.|
PT: Nesta imagem é possível aceder a uma ampla visão da Via Láctea com o planeta Saturno brilhando contra o núcleo da galáxia acima da constelação do Escorpião, enquanto na direção oposta, a estrela brilhante Arcturus se põe atrás de uma camada de nuvens alaranjada. Logo acima do horizonte e em pano de fundo, uma presença suave de airglow (luminescência foto-química) mistura-se com um céu estrelado. No canto superior direito da imagem, uma emissão rosa/vermelha proveniente da Nebulosa América do Norte (NGC7000) é bem visível perto da estrela Deneb, formando um triângulo perfeito com a estrela azul Vega (centro superior) e a estrela Altair (centro esquerdo). Este mosaico da Via Láctea foi captado acima das águas ácidas da Achada do Gamo, que foi desde o início das atividades modernas de mineração na Mina de São Domingos, o centro das atividades metalúrgicas sobre os minérios extraídos. Já durante o século XX, entre as décadas de 30 e 40, uma nova direção de exploração industrial tomou lugar: o enxofre, entretanto muito valorizado, passou a ser extraído das pirites cupríferas através de fornos (processo Orkla) em duas unidades fabris instaladas na Achada do Gamo durante os anos de 1934 e 1943.
A Mina de São Domingos, situa-se no Baixo Alentejo, a cerca de 240 km de Lisboa, no concelho de Mértola, que passou a integrar recentemente a Rota Dark Sky® Alqueva pela grande qualidade do seu céu escuro. A área mineira de São Domingos, está inserida na Faixa Piritosa Ibérica e constitui uma fonte decisiva de metais básicos (Cu, Zn, Pb, Sn, Ag, Au, Fe, Co, Cd, etc.) e de outros elementos como o enxofre (S). Foi desde a Antiguidade um local procurado para a extracção de minérios, existindo indícios de trabalhos de extracção de ouro, prata e cobre no período pré-romano e romano. O depósito pirítico de São Domingos foi explorado em diversos períodos históricos, nomeadamente: durante vários séculos do primeiro milénio a.C. (período Oriental), durante o período que mediou entre o ano 14 a.C. e o ano de 395 d.C. (período romano), durante o período islâmico e durante o período moderno que se iniciou em 1858 para a extracção de cobre, ouro e prata e manteve-se até 1966, ano em que as reservas foram consideradas esgotadas. Neste período, a lavra foi feita a céu aberto até aos 120 metros de profundidade, tendo os trabalhos continuado por meio de poços e galerias até aos 400 metros. Ao longo de 108 anos de exploração regular, foram retirados do local mais de 20 milhões de toneladas de materiais, tendo produzido cerca 14,7 milhões de toneladas de resíduos acumulados em escombreiras de até 14 metros de altura, com uma dezena de materiais diferentes como pirite, gossan, escórias, cinzas, óxidos de ferro, rocha estéril, lamas, entulhos, etc. As áreas de escombreiras, escórias e canais de água, dão à paisagem um aspecto “lunar”. As escombreiras são constituídas por diferentes materiais com teores elevados em metais, como escórias e cinzas, cuja lixiviação através das águas das chuvas leva à produção de águas ácidas (‘acid mine drainage’), geralmente com uma cor ocre ou avermelhada.
Mina de São Domingos, an Open Hole to a Chemical Universe
The magnificent chemical landscape from Achada do Gamo, seems to show an hole to the Universe where we can immerse through a puddle of acid waters, reflecting the starlight from Scorpius and planet Saturn shinning bright against the galaxy core. Since the beginning of modern mining activities in the São Domingos Mine, Achada do Gamo was the center of metallurgical activities on extracted minerals. Some heavy elements presented in these minerals have been created billions of years ago in those stars and through supernovae explosions. The gold for example was made from neutron stars during collisions. Although, silver production occurs in less massive stars than those that produce gold—and through an entirely different type of nuclear fusion, called the weak r-process. The sites of nuclear creation of some elements, such as copper, are not really well known and are continuing topics of observational and computational research. The areas of heaps, slag and channels of water, give the landscape a “lunar” aspect. The heaps are composed of different materials with high levels of metals, such as slag and ash, whose leaching through the rainwater leads to the production of acid mine drainage, usually with an ocher or reddish color.|
São Domingos Mine is located in Baixo Alentejo, about 240 km from Lisbon, in the municipality of Mértola, which recently joined the Dark Sky® Alqueva Route for the great quality of the night sky. The São Domingos mining area is part of the Iberian Pyrite Range and is a decisive source of basic metals (S, Zn, Pb, Sn, Ag, Au, Fe, Co, Cd, etc.) and other elements such as sulfur (S). It has been a sought after place for the extraction of ores since antiquity, with evidence of gold, silver and copper mining in the pre-Roman and Roman times. The pyritic deposit of São Domingos (St. Dominic) was explored in various historical periods, namely: for several centuries of the first millennium BC (Eastern period), during the period between 14 BC and 395 AD (Roman period), during the Islamic period and during the modern period that was initiated in 1858 for the extraction of copper, gold and silver and was maintained until 1966, the year in which the reserves were considered exhausted. During this period, the work was done in the open air up to 120 meters deep, with work continued through wells and galleries up to 400 meters. Over 108 years of regular exploration, more than 20 million tons of materials were removed from the site, producing about 14.7 million tons of waste accumulated in heaps up to 14 meters high with a dozen different materials such as pyrite , gossan, slag, ash, iron oxides, barren rock, sludge, debris, etc.
PT: A magnífica paisagem química de Achada do Gamo, parece mostrar um buraco para o Universo onde podemos mergulhar através de um charco de águas ácidas, refletindo a luz das estrelas do Escorpião e o planeta Saturno brilhando contra o núcleo da galáxia. Desde o início das modernas atividades de mineração na mina de São Domingos, a Achada do Gamo foi o centro das atividades metalúrgicas nos minerais extraídos. Alguns elementos pesados presentes nestes minerais foram criados há milhares de milhões de anos atrás nessas estrelas e através de explosões de supernovas. O ouro, por exemplo, foi feito a partir de estrelas de neutrões durante colisões. Apesar disso, a produção de prata ocorre em estrelas menos maciças do que aquelas que produzem ouro – e através de um tipo completamente diferente de fusão nuclear, chamado de processo-r fraco. As áreas de montes, escórias e canais de água, dão à paisagem um aspecto “lunar” que lhe confere um cenário ímpar. Os montes são compostos de diferentes materiais com altos níveis de metais, como escórias e cinzas, cuja lixiviação através da água da chuva leva à produção de drenagem de minas ácidas, geralmente com uma cor ocre ou avermelhada.
A Mina de São Domingos, situa-se no Baixo Alentejo, a cerca de 240 km de Lisboa, no concelho de Mértola, que passou a integrar recentemente a Rota Dark Sky® Alqueva pela grande qualidade do seu céu escuro. A área mineira de São Domingos, está inserida na Faixa Piritosa Ibérica e constitui uma fonte decisiva de metais básicos (Cu, Zn, Pb, Sn, Ag, Au, Fe, Co, Cd, etc.) e de outros elementos como o enxofre (S). Foi desde a Antiguidade um local procurado para a extracção de minérios, existindo indícios de trabalhos de extracção de ouro, prata e cobre no período pré-romano e romano. O depósito pirítico de São Domingos foi explorado em diversos períodos históricos, nomeadamente: durante vários séculos do primeiro milénio a.C. (período Oriental), durante o período que mediou entre o ano 14 a.C. e o ano de 395 d.C. (período romano), durante o período islâmico e durante o período moderno que se iniciou em 1858 para a extracção de cobre, ouro e prata e manteve-se até 1966, ano em que as reservas foram consideradas esgotadas. Neste período, a lavra foi feita a céu aberto até aos 120 metros de profundidade, tendo os trabalhos continuado por meio de poços e galerias até aos 400 metros. Ao longo de 108 anos de exploração regular, foram retirados do local mais de 20 milhões de toneladas de materiais, tendo produzido cerca 14,7 milhões de toneladas de resíduos acumulados em escombreiras de até 14 metros de altura, com uma dezena de materiais diferentes como pirite, gossan, escórias, cinzas, óxidos de ferro, rocha estéril, lamas, entulhos, etc.
The Arch of Milky Way Shinning Against the Acid Landscape of Achada do Gamo
The arch of Milky Way galaxy behind a tiny layer of clouds mixed with a smooth presence of green airglow, is shinning above a puddle of acid water from Achada do Gamo, that was – since the beginning of modern mining activities in the São Domingos Mine – the center of metallurgical activities on extracted minerals. Already during the 20th century, between the 30s and 40s, a new direction of industrial exploration took place: the sulfur, however much valued, began to be extracted from the copper pyrites through furnaces (Orkla process) in two plants installed in the Achada do Gamo during the years of 1934 and 1943. Near the left chimney is visible the Andromeda galaxy, seen from here as an elongated diffuse dot.
São Domingos Mine is located in Baixo Alentejo, about 240 km from Lisbon, in the municipality of Mértola, which recently joined the Dark Sky® Alqueva Route for the great quality of the night sky. The São Domingos mining area is part of the Iberian Pyrite Range and is a decisive source of basic metals (S, Zn, Pb, Sn, Ag, Au, Fe, Co, Cd, etc.) and other elements such as sulfur (S). It has been a sought after place for the extraction of ores since antiquity, with evidence of gold, silver and copper mining in the pre-Roman and Roman times. The pyritic deposit of São Domingos (St. Dominic) was explored in various historical periods, namely: for several centuries of the first millennium BC (Eastern period), during the period between 14 BC and 395 AD (Roman period), during the Islamic period and during the modern period that was initiated in 1858 for the extraction of copper, gold and silver and was maintained until 1966, the year in which the reserves were considered exhausted. During this period, the work was done in the open air up to 120 meters deep, with work continued through wells and galleries up to 400 meters. Over 108 years of regular exploration, more than 20 million tons of materials were removed from the site, producing about 14.7 million tons of waste accumulated in heaps up to 14 meters high with a dozen different materials such as pyrite , gossan, slag, ash, iron oxides, barren rock, sludge, debris, etc. The areas of heaps, slag and channels of water, give the landscape a “lunar” aspect. The heaps are composed of different materials with high levels of metals, such as slag and ash, whose leaching through the rainwater leads to the production of acid mine drainage, usually with an ocher or reddish color.|
PT: O arco da Via Láctea ergue-se por detrás de uma fina camada de nuvens que se mistura em pano de fundo com a presença suave de airglow, tornando-se visível acima das águas ácidas da Achada do Gamo, que foi desde o início das atividades modernas de mineração na Mina de São Domingos, o centro das atividades metalúrgicas sobre os minérios extraídos. Já durante o século XX, entre as décadas de 30 e 40, uma nova direção de exploração industrial tomou lugar: o enxofre, entretanto muito valorizado, passou a ser extraído das pirites cupríferas através de fornos (processo Orkla) em duas unidades fabris instaladas na Achada do Gamo durante os anos de 1934 e 1943. Logo acima do horizonte esquerdo, e perto da primeira chaminé, é visível a galáxia de Andrómeda, vista a partir daqui como um ponto difuso alongado.
A Mina de São Domingos, situa-se no Baixo Alentejo, a cerca de 240 km de Lisboa, no concelho de Mértola, que passou a integrar recentemente a Rota Dark Sky® Alqueva pela grande qualidade do seu céu escuro. A área mineira de São Domingos, está inserida na Faixa Piritosa Ibérica e constitui uma fonte decisiva de metais básicos (Cu, Zn, Pb, Sn, Ag, Au, Fe, Co, Cd, etc.) e de outros elementos como o enxofre (S). Foi desde a Antiguidade um local procurado para a extracção de minérios, existindo indícios de trabalhos de extracção de ouro, prata e cobre no período pré-romano e romano. O depósito pirítico de São Domingos foi explorado em diversos períodos históricos, nomeadamente: durante vários séculos do primeiro milénio a.C. (período Oriental), durante o período que mediou entre o ano 14 a.C. e o ano de 395 d.C. (período romano), durante o período islâmico e durante o período moderno que se iniciou em 1858 para a extracção de cobre, ouro e prata e manteve-se até 1966, ano em que as reservas foram consideradas esgotadas. Neste período, a lavra foi feita a céu aberto até aos 120 metros de profundidade, tendo os trabalhos continuado por meio de poços e galerias até aos 400 metros. Ao longo de 108 anos de exploração regular, foram retirados do local mais de 20 milhões de toneladas de materiais, tendo produzido cerca 14,7 milhões de toneladas de resíduos acumulados em escombreiras de até 14 metros de altura, com uma dezena de materiais diferentes como pirite, gossan, escórias, cinzas, óxidos de ferro, rocha estéril, lamas, entulhos, etc. As áreas de escombreiras, escórias e canais de água, dão à paisagem um aspecto “lunar”. As escombreiras são constituídas por diferentes materiais com teores elevados em metais, como escórias e cinzas, cuja lixiviação através das águas das chuvas leva à produção de águas ácidas (‘acid mine drainage’), geralmente com uma cor ocre ou avermelhada.
Milky Way Arm above an Acid Water
A view of the Milky Way arm mixed with some clouds with planet Saturn shinning against the galaxy core, near Scorpius constellation. In the top right corner of the image, a pink/red emission from North America Nebula (NGC7000) is well visible near Deneb star, forming a triangle with the blue star Vega (top center) and Altair star (left center). This mosaic of the Milky Way was captured above a puddle of acid water reflecting the starlight from Scorpius and Saturn, located in Achada do Gamo, that was – since the beginning of modern mining activities in the São Domingos Mine – the center of metallurgical activities on extracted minerals. Already during the 20th century, between the 30s and 40s, a new direction of industrial exploration took place: the sulfur, however much valued, began to be extracted from the copper pyrites through furnaces (Orkla process) in two plants installed in the Achada do Gamo during the years of 1934 and 1943.
São Domingos Mine is located in Baixo Alentejo, about 240 km from Lisbon, in the municipality of Mértola, which recently joined the Dark Sky® Alqueva Route for the great quality of the night sky. The São Domingos mining area is part of the Iberian Pyrite Range and is a decisive source of basic metals (S, Zn, Pb, Sn, Ag, Au, Fe, Co, Cd, etc.) and other elements such as sulfur (S). It has been a sought after place for the extraction of ores since antiquity, with evidence of gold, silver and copper mining in the pre-Roman and Roman times. The pyritic deposit of São Domingos (St. Dominic) was explored in various historical periods, namely: for several centuries of the first millennium BC (Eastern period), during the period between 14 BC and 395 AD (Roman period), during the Islamic period and during the modern period that was initiated in 1858 for the extraction of copper, gold and silver and was maintained until 1966, the year in which the reserves were considered exhausted. During this period, the work was done in the open air up to 120 meters deep, with work continued through wells and galleries up to 400 meters. Over 108 years of regular exploration, more than 20 million tons of materials were removed from the site, producing about 14.7 million tons of waste accumulated in heaps up to 14 meters high with a dozen different materials such as pyrite , gossan, slag, ash, iron oxides, barren rock, sludge, debris, etc. The areas of heaps, slag and channels of water, give the landscape a “lunar” aspect. The heaps are composed of different materials with high levels of metals, such as slag and ash, whose leaching through the rainwater leads to the production of acid mine drainage, usually with an ocher or reddish color.|
PT: Uma visão do braço da Via Láctea misturado com algumas nuvens com o planeta Saturno brilhando contra o centro da galáxia, perto da constelação do Escorpião. No canto superior direito da imagem, uma emissão rosa/vermelha proveniente da Nebulosa América do Norte (NGC7000) é bem visível perto da estrela Deneb, formando um triângulo com a estrela azul Vega (centro superior) e a estrela Altair (centro esquerdo). Este mosaico da Via Láctea foi captado acima das águas ácidas de um charco, reflectindo a luz estelar de Escorpião e Saturno, a partir da região da Achada do Gamo, que foi desde o início das atividades modernas de mineração na Mina de São Domingos, o centro das atividades metalúrgicas sobre os minérios extraídos. Já durante o século XX, entre as décadas de 30 e 40, uma nova direção de exploração industrial tomou lugar: o enxofre, entretanto muito valorizado, passou a ser extraído das pirites cupríferas através de fornos (processo Orkla) em duas unidades fabris instaladas na Achada do Gamo durante os anos de 1934 e 1943.
A Mina de São Domingos, situa-se no Baixo Alentejo, a cerca de 240 km de Lisboa, no concelho de Mértola, que passou a integrar recentemente a Rota Dark Sky® Alqueva pela grande qualidade do seu céu escuro. A área mineira de São Domingos, está inserida na Faixa Piritosa Ibérica e constitui uma fonte decisiva de metais básicos (Cu, Zn, Pb, Sn, Ag, Au, Fe, Co, Cd, etc.) e de outros elementos como o enxofre (S). Foi desde a Antiguidade um local procurado para a extracção de minérios, existindo indícios de trabalhos de extracção de ouro, prata e cobre no período pré-romano e romano. O depósito pirítico de São Domingos foi explorado em diversos períodos históricos, nomeadamente: durante vários séculos do primeiro milénio a.C. (período Oriental), durante o período que mediou entre o ano 14 a.C. e o ano de 395 d.C. (período romano), durante o período islâmico e durante o período moderno que se iniciou em 1858 para a extracção de cobre, ouro e prata e manteve-se até 1966, ano em que as reservas foram consideradas esgotadas. Neste período, a lavra foi feita a céu aberto até aos 120 metros de profundidade, tendo os trabalhos continuado por meio de poços e galerias até aos 400 metros. Ao longo de 108 anos de exploração regular, foram retirados do local mais de 20 milhões de toneladas de materiais, tendo produzido cerca 14,7 milhões de toneladas de resíduos acumulados em escombreiras de até 14 metros de altura, com uma dezena de materiais diferentes como pirite, gossan, escórias, cinzas, óxidos de ferro, rocha estéril, lamas, entulhos, etc. As áreas de escombreiras, escórias e canais de água, dão à paisagem um aspecto “lunar”. As escombreiras são constituídas por diferentes materiais com teores elevados em metais, como escórias e cinzas, cuja lixiviação através das águas das chuvas leva à produção de águas ácidas (‘acid mine drainage’), geralmente com uma cor ocre ou avermelhada.
Summer Triangle and Planet Saturn Shinning above Achada do Gamo
A view of the Milky Way arm with planet Saturn shinning against the galaxy core, near Scorpius constellation. In the top right corner of the image, a pink/red emission from North America Nebula (NGC7000) is well visible near Deneb star, forming a perfect triangle with the blue star Vega (top center) and Altair star (left center). This mosaic of the Milky Way was captured above a puddle of acid water from Achada do Gamo, that was – since the beginning of modern mining activities in the São Domingos Mine – the center of metallurgical activities on extracted minerals. Already during the 20th century, between the 30s and 40s, a new direction of industrial exploration took place: the sulfur, however much valued, began to be extracted from the copper pyrites through furnaces (Orkla process) in two plants installed in the Achada do Gamo during the years of 1934 and 1943.
São Domingos Mine is located in Baixo Alentejo, about 240 km from Lisbon, in the municipality of Mértola, which recently joined the Dark Sky® Alqueva Route for the great quality of the night sky. The São Domingos mining area is part of the Iberian Pyrite Range and is a decisive source of basic metals (S, Zn, Pb, Sn, Ag, Au, Fe, Co, Cd, etc.) and other elements such as sulfur (S). It has been a sought after place for the extraction of ores since antiquity, with evidence of gold, silver and copper mining in the pre-Roman and Roman times. The pyritic deposit of São Domingos (St. Dominic) was explored in various historical periods, namely: for several centuries of the first millennium BC (Eastern period), during the period between 14 BC and 395 AD (Roman period), during the Islamic period and during the modern period that was initiated in 1858 for the extraction of copper, gold and silver and was maintained until 1966, the year in which the reserves were considered exhausted. During this period, the work was done in the open air up to 120 meters deep, with work continued through wells and galleries up to 400 meters. Over 108 years of regular exploration, more than 20 million tons of materials were removed from the site, producing about 14.7 million tons of waste accumulated in heaps up to 14 meters high with a dozen different materials such as pyrite , gossan, slag, ash, iron oxides, barren rock, sludge, debris, etc. The areas of heaps, slag and channels of water, give the landscape a “lunar” aspect. The heaps are composed of different materials with high levels of metals, such as slag and ash, whose leaching through the rainwater leads to the production of acid mine drainage, usually with an ocher or reddish color.|
PT: Uma visão do braço da Via Láctea com o planeta Saturno brilhando contra o centro da galáxia, perto da constelação do Escorpião. No canto superior direito da imagem, uma emissão rosa/vermelha proveniente da Nebulosa América do Norte (NGC7000) é bem visível perto da estrela Deneb, formando um triângulo perfeito com a estrela azul Vega (centro superior) e a estrela Altair (centro esquerdo). Este mosaico da Via Láctea foi captado acima das águas ácidas da Achada do Gamo, que foi desde o início das atividades modernas de mineração na Mina de São Domingos, o centro das atividades metalúrgicas sobre os minérios extraídos. Já durante o século XX, entre as décadas de 30 e 40, uma nova direção de exploração industrial tomou lugar: o enxofre, entretanto muito valorizado, passou a ser extraído das pirites cupríferas através de fornos (processo Orkla) em duas unidades fabris instaladas na Achada do Gamo durante os anos de 1934 e 1943.
A Mina de São Domingos, situa-se no Baixo Alentejo, a cerca de 240 km de Lisboa, no concelho de Mértola, que passou a integrar recentemente a Rota Dark Sky® Alqueva pela grande qualidade do seu céu escuro. A área mineira de São Domingos, está inserida na Faixa Piritosa Ibérica e constitui uma fonte decisiva de metais básicos (Cu, Zn, Pb, Sn, Ag, Au, Fe, Co, Cd, etc.) e de outros elementos como o enxofre (S). Foi desde a Antiguidade um local procurado para a extracção de minérios, existindo indícios de trabalhos de extracção de ouro, prata e cobre no período pré-romano e romano. O depósito pirítico de São Domingos foi explorado em diversos períodos históricos, nomeadamente: durante vários séculos do primeiro milénio a.C. (período Oriental), durante o período que mediou entre o ano 14 a.C. e o ano de 395 d.C. (período romano), durante o período islâmico e durante o período moderno que se iniciou em 1858 para a extracção de cobre, ouro e prata e manteve-se até 1966, ano em que as reservas foram consideradas esgotadas. Neste período, a lavra foi feita a céu aberto até aos 120 metros de profundidade, tendo os trabalhos continuado por meio de poços e galerias até aos 400 metros. Ao longo de 108 anos de exploração regular, foram retirados do local mais de 20 milhões de toneladas de materiais, tendo produzido cerca 14,7 milhões de toneladas de resíduos acumulados em escombreiras de até 14 metros de altura, com uma dezena de materiais diferentes como pirite, gossan, escórias, cinzas, óxidos de ferro, rocha estéril, lamas, entulhos, etc. As áreas de escombreiras, escórias e canais de água, dão à paisagem um aspecto “lunar”. As escombreiras são constituídas por diferentes materiais com teores elevados em metais, como escórias e cinzas, cuja lixiviação através das águas das chuvas leva à produção de águas ácidas (‘acid mine drainage’), geralmente com uma cor ocre ou avermelhada.
A Bright Meteor from Geminid above Monsaraz
As the Earth was passing through a stream of gravelly debris from “rock comet” 3200 Phaethon, I´ve captured a bright meteor above Monsaraz, Dark Sky® Alqueva reserve, in the night before the expected peak of annual Geminid meteor shower.
PT: À medida que a Terra passava pela rota de detritos deixados para trás pelo “cometa rochoso” 3200 Phaethon, foi possível captar um meteoro brilhante acima de Monsaraz, Reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva, na noite anterior ao pico esperado da chuva anual de meteoros Gemínidas.
Colourful Yosemite During the Night
First protected in 1864, Yosemite National Park is best known for its waterfalls, but within its nearly 1,200 square miles, it´s full of beauty with deep valleys, grand meadows, ancient giant sequoias, and a vast wilderness area where the animals are living in harmony with the strength of granite, the power of glaciers, and the tranquility of the High Sierra, that shows the persistence of life even with the large and strong fires that seems to threaten all this area each summer.
A blaze near Yosemite National Park have created smoky skies for days. From the center up to the top of the image, a Milky Way is trying to shine above the band of smoke and dust from the fire. Works on the exit road of the park have helped to light up the scene for several hours, making the Tunnel View of Yosemite so colourful and beautiful, even during the night.
Milky Way from the Tunnel View of Yosemite National Park
First protected in 1864, Yosemite National Park is best known for its waterfalls, but within its nearly 1,200 square miles, it´s full of beauty with deep valleys, grand meadows, ancient giant sequoias, and a vast wilderness area where the animals are living in harmony with the strength of granite, the power of glaciers, and the tranquility of the High Sierra, that shows the persistence of life even with the large and strong fires that seems to threaten all this area each summer.
A blaze near Yosemite National Park have created smoky skies for days. On the top of the image, a Milky Way is trying to shine above the band of smoke and dust in this framing from the beautiful Tunnel View of Yosemite. Works on the exit road of the park have helped to light up the scene for several hours.
Lonely Shadow in a Desert of Stars
In a remote place like a desert, faraway from light polluted cities, the Milky Way can reach a level of brightness enough to project a smooth shadow of a body on the ground, like the one of this stargazer that is contemplating the majestic sky from Zabriskie Point, part of Amargosa Range located east of Death Valley in Death Valley National Park in California, United States, noted for its erosional landscape. It is composed of sediments from Furnace Creek Lake, which dried up 5 million years ago—long before Death Valley came into existence. The hottest air temperature ever recorded in Death Valley was 134 °F (56.7 °C) on July 10, 1913, at Furnace Creek, which is the hottest atmospheric temperature ever recorded on earth.
Milky Way – A lost Candle in the Desert of Death Valley
Zabriskie Point is a part of Amargosa Range located east of Death Valley in Death Valley National Park, in California, United States, noted for its erosional landscape. It is composed of sediments from Furnace Creek Lake, which dried up 5 million years ago—long before Death Valley came into existence. The hottest air temperature ever recorded in Death Valley was 134 °F (56.7 °C) on July 10, 1913, at Furnace Creek, which is the hottest atmospheric temperature ever recorded on earth.During the heat wave that peaked with that record, five consecutive days reached 129 °F (54 °C) or above. In the center of the image, the core of Milky Way is shinning so bright, that creates the illusion like if it was enough to illuminate the right top of the mountain range from Zabriskie point. Although, the mountain was actually and momently illuminated by a car light that was passing by.
Milky Way from Zabriskie Point in Death Valley
Zabriskie Point is a part of Amargosa Range located east of Death Valley in Death Valley National Park in California, United States, noted for its erosional landscape. It is composed of sediments from Furnace Creek Lake, which dried up 5 million years ago—long before Death Valley came into existence. The hottest air temperature ever recorded in Death Valley was 134 °F (56.7 °C) on July 10, 1913, at Furnace Creek, which is the hottest atmospheric temperature ever recorded on earth.During the heat wave that peaked with that record, five consecutive days reached 129 °F (54 °C) or above. In the night that this panoramic scene was captured above Badlands from Zabriskie point, the air temperature near midnight was 41ºc.
The Arch of Milky Way was high in the Sky in that time of the year, making very difficult to capture this perfect “half of circle” touching the Zenith, where we can see in the top center, a blue bright star with an apparent magnitude of 0,0 called Vega, serving as a middle reference in the magnitude system chart created for the first time in 150 B.C.E, by the greek astronomer Hipparchus. Vega, from Lyra constellation, is forming an asterism well know as the “Summer Triangle” with stars Deneb (from Cygnus) and Altair (from Aquila). At the left side – in the beginning of the Milky Way – a bright elliptic and diffuse dot is the light coming from Andromeda Galaxy while in the opposite direction of the sky – right edge of the picture – the orange supergiant star of Antares, from Scorpius constellations, is setting below the hot horizon of Death Valley´s landscape. In the center right, and below the arch, is also visible a faint white light known as Gegenschein. It´s a faint brightening of the night sky in the region of the antisolar point. like the zodiacal light, the gegenschein is sunlight scattered by interplanetary dust.
Milky Way and a Reddish Moon Behind the Smoke of Fire in Yosemite
First protected in 1864, Yosemite National Park is best known for its waterfalls, but within its nearly 1,200 square miles, it´s full of beauty with deep valleys, grand meadows, ancient giant sequoias, and a vast wilderness area where the animals are living in harmony with the strength of granite, the power of glaciers, and the tranquility of the High Sierra, that shows the persistence of life even with the large and strong fires that seems to threaten all this area each summer.
A blaze in Yosemite National Park have create smoky skies. The South Fork Fire, started about a mile east of Wawona grew to more than 5,100 acres, while to the north, near Glacier Point Road, the Empire Fire, started by a lightning, and grew to more than 2,300 acres. In the park, areas like Yosemite Valley, Half Dome, and El Capitan have remained smoky for days. Due to this effect, we can see on the image taken in the Yosemite Valley, a reddish moon behind the smoke while at left side, the Milky Way is trying to shine. There are hints of red and brown but also blues in the clouds. Smoke particles are much smaller than the wavelengths of sunlight and scatter blue light much more strongly than red (Rayleigh scattering). The blues of the rays are strengthened whereas the clouds seen by transmission through shadowed smoky air have their light reddened because the blues are more strongly scattered from the direct beam.
Rho Ophiuchi – A Colourful Cloud in Space
Featuring the bright orange star Antares from Scorpius constellation, Rho Ophiuchi Cloud Complex is one of the most colourful nebulas in space and the closest star-forming regions to the Solar System, at an estimated distance of 460 light years.These interstellar clouds of gas and dust contain both red emission nebulas and blue reflection nebulas. The dark brown regions are caused by dust grains, born in young stellar atmospheres, which effectively block light emitted behind them. From the lower left corner, many dark absorption nebulas extends from the central band of our Milky Way Galaxy. Connecting the Pipe Nebula to the colourful region near bright star Antares, is a dark cloud known as “Dark River”, it can be identified as the brown dust lane connected to Antares, and spans about 100 light years. Since the Dark River dust lane lies only about 500 light years away, it only appears as a bridge to the much more distant Galactic Center, that actually lies about 25,000 light years farther away. The distant globular cluster M4 is just seen at the right of the red supergiant star Antares, one of the brighter stars in the night sky, though it lies far behind the colourful cloud complex, at a distance of some 7,000 light-years.
PT: Nesta imagem é possível ver a brilhante estrela alaranjada Antares da constelação do Escorpião, no meio do complexo de Rho Ophiuchi, um dos complexos nebulosos mais coloridos do espaço e uma das regiões de formações de estrelas mais próximas ao sistema solar, localizado a uma distância estimada de 460 anos-luz, estas nuvens inter-estelares de gás e poeiras contêm nebulosas de emissão (vermelhas) e nebulosas de reflexão (azul). As regiões a castanho escuro são causadas por grãos de poeira, nascidos em atmosferas estelares jovens, que efetivamente bloqueiam a luz emitida por trás delas. No canto inferior esquerdo, muitas nebulosas de absorção escura se estendem da banda central de nossa Galáxia, a Via Láctea, conectando a “Pipe Nebula” à região colorida perto da estrela brilhante Antares. Esta nebulosa escura é conhecida como “Dark River”, pode ser identificada como a banda de poeira castanha escura que está conectada à região de Antares e que se estende por 100 anos-luz de distância. O aglomerado globular M4 pode ser visto à direita da estrela super gigante vermelha Antares, uma das estrelas mais brilhantes do céu noturno, este aglomerado está no entanto bem atrás do complexo colorido, a uma distância de cerca de 7.000 anos-luz.
Technical details | Detalhes Técnicos
Nikon D810a | 105mm f/3.5| ISO800 – Exp. 105 seconds x 42 lights | Montagem HEQ5 Pro |Total integration of 42 Lights: 73,5 minutes. Processing on PixInsight 1.8 and Photoshop CC. Cumeada Observatory from Dark Sky® Alqueva Reserve, Reguengos de Monsaraz.
Respecting the Night Sky – Milky Way above Cumeada Observatory, Dark Sky Alqueva
Cumeada, in Reguengos de Monsaraz, Portugal, is a small village where is located the headquarter of Dark Sky® Alqueva Reserve, the First Starlight Tourism Destination in the World. The recovered building is an old primary school rehabilitated by the Municipality of Reguengos to receive the official Observatory of Dark Sky® Alqueva. All the public lights from the entire village were changed to LED and the position of incident light, directed to the ground, as we can see in the image. An effort between the main power supplier company operating in Portugal (EDP), the Municipality and the Dark Sky® Alqueva, to respect the night sky and all the surrounding needs. Whenever the Observatory is operating, the light flux from the entire village can be reduced from 100% to 10% only, using a smartphone app, so even with the street lights On and set to 10%, we can clearly distinguish the Milky Way arch, the street itself, the roads and surrounding area, so people can feel secure at the same time. This procedure had a huge impact in the night sky quality that is constantly monitored with a Sky Quality Meter registering an average measurement of SQM: 21.45 mag/arcsec^2.
PT: A Cumeada, em Reguengos de Monsaraz, Portugal, é uma pequena vila onde está localizada a sede da Dark Sky® Alqueva, o Primeiro Destino Turístico do Mundo certificado pela Fundação Starlight. O edifício recuperado é uma antiga escola primária do Estado Novo reabilitada pelo Município de Reguengos para receber o Observatório oficial do Dark Sky® Alqueva. As luzes públicas de toda a vila foram alteradas para LED e a posição da luz incidente, direcionada para o chão, como é possível ver na imagem captada numa noite húmida e fria, permitindo registar esse ângulo de incidência da luz. Um esforço conjunto entre a EDP, o Município e a Reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva, para respeitar o céu noturno e todas as necessidades circundantes. Sempre que o Observatório está operando, o fluxo de luz de toda a vila pode ser reduzido de 100% para 10% apenas, usando um aplicativo para smartphone. Deste modo, mesmo com as luzes da rua acesas e reduzidas para 10%, é possível distinguir claramente o braço arqueado da Via Láctea no céu, assim como a rua, as estradas e área circundante, para que as pessoas também se possam sentir simultaneamente seguras. Este procedimento teve um enorme impacto na qualidade do céu noturno da região da sede, que é constantemente monitorizado com um Medidor da Qualidade do Céu (SQM) registando uma medida média de SQM: 21,45 mag/arcsec^2.
Milky Way Crossing the Entire Sky of La Palma
PT: Nesta imagem “full dome” captada com uma lente “olho-peixe de 180º” é possível ver a Via Láctea atravessando o céu de La Palma, enquanto na parte superior se encontra visível o Laser Verde do William Herschel Telescope (WHT) projecto em direcção ao Zénite (centro da imagem). Na direcção oposta do céu, (região inferior) encontra-se o Isaac Newton Telescope (INT). Fotografia captada nas montanhas rochosas de Roque de Los Muchachos, em La Palma, nas Ilhas Canárias.
The Powerful Green Laser of William Herschel Telescope
Development of new instrumentation is crucial for the continued scientific health of any telescope facility. At the WHT a vibrant development programme was in place, focusing on providing the widest possible science use of adaptive optics, a technique that greatly improves image quality by correcting for the degradation due to turbulent motions in the Earth’s atmosphere. Adaptive optics is now well established at several telescopes around the world. The potential of adaptive optics is huge because the improved spatial resolution allows the detection of sources and fine structures in complex systems that would otherwise not be resolved. Examples are the study of dense stellar clusters, cores of relatively nearby galaxies, and complex star-formation regions.
The technique of adaptive optics, although of huge potential, has its limitations. The requirement that a bright point source lies very close to the object of interest implies that less than 1% of the sky is accessible for the technique. There is, however, a solution to this problem, which is to create an artificial “star” by projecting a bright laser beam on the sky. Such a laser beacon assumes the role of the bright star, hence opening virtually all of the sky to observation with adaptive optics. The current developments at the WHT focus on the design and construction of such a laser beacon system, which will result in a dramatic enhancement of the science prospects of the telescope. Interestingly, adaptive optics and laser beacons are crucial for the next generation of extremely large telescopes that are currently being planned. These future telescopes, with unprecedented large primary mirror diameters of 30 or even 100m, require many solutions to be found for a range of technological problems. Thanks to the ongoing developments in this area at the WHT this telescope is well placed to play a key role as a testbed facility where techniques for these future telescopes can be explored under realistic conditions.
The Transition between Day and Night
This lovely skyscape scene shows the end of nautical twilight above Roque de Los Muchachos observatory, and the transition between the end of the day and the beginning of the night. Each twilight phase is defined by the solar elevation angle, which is the position of the Sun in relation to the horizon. During nautical twilight, the geometric center of the Sun’s disk is between 6 and 12 degrees below the horizon. In clear weather conditions, the horizon is faintly visible during this twilight phase. Many of the brighter stars can also be seen, making it possible to use the position of the stars in relation to the horizon to navigate at sea. This is why it is called nautical twilight. Although, if we had to this ingredients the perfect position and time of the year to watch the central region of the Milky Way as soon as the sky stays dark, we can capture beyond the brightest stars the dusty core of the galaxy with very natural colours mixed yet with the background light coming from the transition of the Nautical Twilight to the Astronomical Twilight, when the Sun is even low then 12º below the horizon. In the foreground are spread different night and solar observatories from Roque de Los Mucahchos, one of them is William Herschel Telescope, that can be seen in the right edge of the image with the dome opened while it´s laser is pointed high up in the sky.
PT: Esta linda cena “skyscape” mostra o final do Crepúsculo Náutico acima do observatório Roque de Los Muchachos, e a transição entre o final do dia e o início da noite. Cada fase crepuscular é definida pelo ângulo de elevação solar, que é a posição do Sol em relação ao horizonte. Durante o Crepúsculo Náutico, o centro geométrico do disco do Sol está entre 6 e 12 graus abaixo do horizonte. Em condições climáticas claras, o horizonte é visível durante esta fase crepuscular. Muitas das estrelas mais brilhantes também podem ser vistas, tornando possível usar a posição das estrelas em relação ao horizonte para navegar no mar. É por isso que é chamado Crepúsculo Náutico. No entanto, se a estes ingredientes juntarmos a posição e época do ano perfeita para observar a região central da Via Láctea logo que o céu escureça, podemos captar além das estrelas mais brilhantes o núcleo empoeirado da galáxia com cores muito naturais, misturadas ainda com a luz de fundo proveniente da transição do Crepúsculo Náutico para o Crepúsculo Astronómico, quando o Sol está mais de 12º abaixo do horizonte. No primeiro plano, estão espalhados diferentes observatórios noturnos e solares do Roque de Los Mucahchos, um deles é o Telescópio William Herschel, que pode ser visto na extremidade direita da imagem com a cúpula aberta enquanto o laser é apontado para o alto do céu.
William Herschel Pointing to the Middle of Summer Triangle
In the foreground we can see from left to right, the tower of Swedish 1-m Solar Telescope (SST), the largest solar telescope in Europe and number one in the world when it comes to high spatial resolution and the Jacobus Kapteyn Telescope (JKT) with a parabolic primary mirror of 1.0 m diameter. At lower right is visible the powerful green laser from William Herschel Telescope (WHT) pointing high in sky and by coincidence, centred exactly in the middle of the well known asterism of “Summer Triangle”, formed by the stars Altair (from Aquila constellation), Vega (Lyra) and Deneb (Cygnus). Roque de Los Muchachos mountain, is located in La Palma, Canary islands. The laser guide star is in use at the WHT during a few nights per semester, so this was a rare opportunity to capture it.
PT: Em primeiro plano podemos ver da esquerda para a direita, a torre do Swedish 1-m Solar Telescope (SST), o maior telescópio solar da Europa e o número um no mundo quando se trata de alta resolução espacial, seguido do telescópio Jacobus Kapteyn (JKT ) com um espelho primário parabólico de 1,0 m de diâmetro. Mais abaixo à direita é visível o poderoso laser verde do telescópio William Herschel (WHT) que apontando alto para o céu, por coincidência, está centrado exatamente no meio do conhecido asterismo “Triângulo de Verão”, formado pelas estrelas Altair (da constelação Aquila), Vega (Lyra) e Deneb (Cygnus). A montanha rochosa de Roque de Los Muchachos está localizado em La Palma, nas ilhas Canárias.
MAGIC – A Pair of Twins in the Moonlight
This moonlight scene shows the large structure of MAGIC (Major Atmospheric Gamma-ray Imaging Cherenkov Telescopes), a system of two Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes located at the Roque de los Muchachos Observatory on La Palma, one of the Canary Islands, at about 2200 m above sea level. MAGIC detects particle showers released by gamma rays, using the Cherenkov radiation, i.e., faint light radiated by the charged particles in the showers. With a diameter of 17 meters and 236 m2 reflective surface, it was the largest in the world before the construction of H.E.S.S. II. MAGIC is not only huge, but also pioneers a number of technical developments that had never been applied to Cherenkov telescopes before. The mirror is extremely light and can be moved to any position in the sky in less than thirty seconds. It is made up of 270 individual mirror panels that can be independently focussed using an active mirror control system equipped with lasers.
The cosmos and its evolution are studied using all radiation, in particular electromagnetic waves. The observable spectrum extends from radio waves to infrared, visible, ultraviolet, X-ray, gamma-rays and finally very high energy gamma rays (starting at energies of 10 GeV). Observations at visible wavelengths (.5 to 1 micrometer) have a history of centuries, gamma astronomy by satellites (keV to few GeV) and ground-based telescopes (above 300 GeV) are end-of-20th century newcomers. The MAGIC telescope can detect very high energy gamma rays in a range of energies where no other telescope in the world can operate, so it opens up a brand new window into the universe.
PT: Esta cena ao luar mostra a grande estrutura de MAGIC (Major Atmospheric Gamma-ray Imaging Cherenkov Telescopes), um sistema de dois telescópios gémeos, preparados para detectar explosões de Raios-Gama. Localizado no Observatório Roque de los Muchachos em La Palma, Ilhas Canárias, esta estrutura encontra-se a cerca de 2200m de altitude.
Adaptive Optics in William Herschel Telescope
Development of new instrumentation is crucial for the continued scientific health of any telescope facility. At the WHT a vibrant development programme was in place, focusing on providing the widest possible science use of adaptive optics, a technique that greatly improves image quality by correcting for the degradation due to turbulent motions in the Earth’s atmosphere. Adaptive optics is now well established at several telescopes around the world. The potential of adaptive optics is huge because the improved spatial resolution allows the detection of sources and fine structures in complex systems that would otherwise not be resolved. Examples are the study of dense stellar clusters, cores of relatively nearby galaxies, and complex star-formation regions.
The technique of adaptive optics, although of huge potential, has its limitations. The requirement that a bright point source lies very close to the object of interest implies that less than 1% of the sky is accessible for the technique. There is, however, a solution to this problem, which is to create an artificial “star” by projecting a bright laser beam on the sky. Such a laser beacon assumes the role of the bright star, hence opening virtually all of the sky to observation with adaptive optics. The current developments at the WHT focus on the design and construction of such a laser beacon system, which will result in a dramatic enhancement of the science prospects of the telescope. Interestingly, adaptive optics and laser beacons are crucial for the next generation of extremely large telescopes that are currently being planned. These future telescopes, with unprecedented large primary mirror diameters of 30 or even 100m, require many solutions to be found for a range of technological problems. Thanks to the ongoing developments in this area at the WHT this telescope is well placed to play a key role as a testbed facility where techniques for these future telescopes can be explored under realistic conditions.
A wide view from Roque de Los Muchachos
PT: Vista panorâmica da montanha de Roque de Los Muchachos, em La Palma, nas Ilhas Canárias, onde se encontra um dos maiores observatórios do mundo, um complexo de 15 telescópios de 19 nações que opera perto da costa da África, Oceano Atlântico. Da esquerda para a direita, podemos ver o laser verde do telescópio William Herschel (WHT), o braço da Via Láctea e abaixo dele, uma camada de nuvens iluminada pelo luar. Acima das nuvens, fica a cúpula cinza do Nordic Optical Telescope (NOT) enquanto no primeiro plano (lado direito) encontra-se a cúpula do Telescópio Isaac Newton (INT). No extremo direito, é possível ver a lua a nascer acima do horizonte.
A Green Sword from William Herschel Telescope
A portrait view taken from Roque de Los Muchachos observatory, in La Palma Canary island, where we can see the powerful green laser from William Herschel Telescope (WHT) pointed to the Zenith. The CANARY laser guide star is in use at the WHT during a few nights per semester, so this is a rare opportunity to capture it in one entire year. During these nights, the risk of collisions with the pointing of other telescopes can be queried via a laser traffic control system. In the background of this “green sword”, a beautiful arch of gas and dust from our Galaxy, the Milky Way, is shinning against the sky.
PT: Neste retrato captado a partir do Observatório de Roque de Los Muchachos, em La Palma, nas Ilhas Canárias, é possível ver o poderoso laser verde do telescópio William Herschel (WHT) apontado ao Zénite. O CANARY laser guide, funciona como uma “estrela guia” para optimizar a utilização do sistema de óptica adaptativa do WHT durante algumas noites por semestre, assim, esta é uma rara oportunidade para captá-lo ao longo de um ano inteiro. Durante estas noites, o risco de colisões com o apontador por parte de outros telescópios pode ser evitado através da consulta de um sistema de controle de tráfego do laser. No fundo desta “espada verde”, um belo arco de gás e poeira da nossa Galáxia, a Via Láctea, brilha contra o céu de fundo.
Arched Milky Way above La Palma
A panoramic view with the mountain of Roque de Los Muchachos, in La Palma Canary island, where stands a huge complex with 15 telescopes, some of the largest telescopes in the world from 19 nations working near the coast of Africa, in Atlantic Ocean. At left edge, the Zodiacal Light touch the Milky Way that start its arched shape near the William Herschel Telescope (WHT) with the laser pointed to the Zenith, while in the opposite direction, the faintest part of Milky Way arm sets behind the open dome of Isaac Newton Telescope (INT).
PT: Vista panorâmica da montanha de Roque de Los Muchachos, em La Palma, nas Ilhas Canárias, onde se encontra um dos maiores observatórios do mundo, um complexo de 15 telescópios de 19 nações que opera perto da costa da África, Oceano Atlântico. Na extremidade esquerda, a subtileza da Luz Zodiacal toca a Via Láctea que começa a sua forma arqueada perto do Telescópio William Herschel (WHT) que tem o laser apontado em direcção ao Zénite, enquanto na direção oposta, é possível ver a outra extremidade do arco galáctico, representado pela parte mais ténue da Via Láctea que se vai ocultando atrás da cúpula do Telescópio Isaac Newton (INT), visível à direita.
Alqueva Paradise and the Winter Sky
This paradise night scene of the winter sky above the lake of Campinho village, Alqueva Dark Sky® Reserve, shows, above, star clusters and diffuse red/violet colors shinning from deep space objects like Orion and other emission nebulae spread in the celestial sphere. In the center left of the image, we can see a rare and faint white light known as Gegenschein, a faint brightening of the night sky in the region of the antisolar point. like the zodiacal light, the gegenschein is sunlight scattered by interplanetary dust. Most of this dust is orbiting the Sun in about the ecliptic plane. It is distinguished from zodiacal light by its high angle of reflection of the incident sunlight on the dust particles.
PT: Esta linda cena noturna do céu de inverno que se ergue acima do lago da vila do Campinho, Reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva, mostra-nos aglomerados de estrelas e cores difusas vermelho/violeta brilhando intensamente espalhadas pelo céu de inverno, provenientes de nebulosas de emissão e objectos de céu profundo como Orion. No centro esquerdo da imagem, podemos ver uma luz branca rara e fraca conhecida como Gegenschein, que é um ligeiro brilho do céu noturno na região do ponto antisolar. Como a luz zodiacal, o gegenschein é a luz solar dispersa pela poeira interplanetária. A maior parte dessa poeira está orbitando o Sol em torno do plano eclíptico. Distingue-se da luz zodiacal pelo seu alto ângulo de reflexão da luz solar incidente sobre as partículas de poeira.
Gegenschein Against the Winter Deep Sky
This lovely night scene of the winter sky above the lake of Campinho village, Alqueva Dark Sky® Reserve, shows high above, star clusters and diffuse red/violet colors shinning from deep sky objects like California, Rosette, Barnard´s Loop, Horse Head, Orion and other emission nebulae spread in the winter sky. At left in center of the image, we can see a rare and faint white light known as Gegenschein, that is a faint brightening of the night sky in the region of the antisolar point. like the zodiacal light, the gegenschein is sunlight scattered by interplanetary dust. Most of this dust is orbiting the Sun in about the ecliptic plane. It is distinguished from zodiacal light by its high angle of reflection of the incident sunlight on the dust particles. Below some bands of red airglow are also visible.
PT: Esta linda cena noturna do céu de inverno que se ergue acima do lago da vila do Campinho, Reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva, mostra-nos aglomerados de estrelas e cores difusas vermelho/violeta brilhando intensamente espalhadas pelo céu de inverno. California, Rosette, Barnard´s Loop, Horse Head e Orion, são algumas das imensas nebulosas de emissão visíveis nesta época do ano. À esquerda no centro da imagem, podemos ver uma luz branca rara e fraca conhecida como Gegenschein, que é um ligeiro brilho do céu noturno na região do ponto antisolar. Como a luz zodiacal, o gegenschein é a luz solar dispersa pela poeira interplanetária. A maior parte dessa poeira está orbitando o Sol em torno do plano eclíptico. Distingue-se da luz zodiacal pelo seu alto ângulo de reflexão da luz solar incidente sobre as partículas de poeira. Abaixo, são ainda visíveis algumas faixas de airglow vermelho.
A Bridge to Andromeda Galaxy
In this lovely night scene of the winter sky we can see a small bridge from Campinho region, Alqueva Dark Sky® Reserve that seems to indicate the path to Andromeda Galaxy which is visible just above the horizon in the center of the picture. High above, star clusters and diffuse red/violet colors are shinning and spread in the winter sky, coming from deep sky objects like Orion, California, Rosette, Barnard´s Loop, Heart & Soul and other emission nebulae. At left in the direction of Pleiades, a faint white light is visible and known as the Zodiacal Light.
PT: Nesta cena de céu noturno do inverno, podemos ver uma pequena ponte da região do Campinho, na Reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva, que parece indicar o caminho para a Galáxia de Andrómeda, que é visível logo acima do horizonte no centro da fotografia. No alto, aglomerados de estrelas e cores difusas vermelho/violeta brilham intensamente espalhadas pelo céu de inverno. Orion, California, Rosette, Barnard´s Loop, Heart & Soul nebula, são algumas das imensas nebulosas de emissão visíveis nesta época do ano. À esquerda, na direção das Pleiades, uma fraca luz branca é visível e conhecida como a Luz Zodiacal.
Dreaming Sphere
A path of light illuminates our land on Earth, but in the same way, a light cloud of gas and dust is shining bright and high in the sky of this full dome view. In the foreground, a dead tree is standing below the gigantic arc of our galaxy, the Milky Way. This “dreaming sphere” was captured in Noudar Park, Alqueva Dark Sky® Reserve, Barrancos.
PT: Um caminho de luz ilumina a Terra, enquanto simultaneamente uma nuvem luminosa de gás e poeira cósmica brilha alto no céu desta visão “full dome”. Em primeiro plano, uma árvore morta mantém-se erguida abaixo do gigantesco arco galáctico da Via Láctea. Esta “esfera de sonhos” foi captada no Parque de Natureza de Noudar, em Barrancos, na Reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva.
Milky Way above Trees in São Pedro de Atacama
Central region of Milky Way above the trees of a farm from the small desert village of São Pedro de Atacama. Chile – October 2015.
PT: Região Central da Via Láctea acima das árvores de uma quinta na vila de São Pedro de Atacama. Chile. Outubro 2015
Milky Way and Magellanic Clouds above São Pedro de Atacama
Milky Way arc with Zodiacal Light above a farm from the small desert village of São Pedro de Atacama. In the left part of this panoramic view, is also visible the Canopus star rising above the horizon and the Large (LMC) and Small (SMC) Magellanic clouds shining high in the sky of Chile – October 2015.
PT: O arco da Via Láctea e a Luz Zodiacal acima de uma quinta na vila de São Pedro de Atacama. À esquerda, a estrela Canopus nasce acima do horizonte, e logo acima desta, erguem-se a grande (LMC) e pequena (SMC) Nuvem de Magalhães – galáxias satélite da Via Láctea – visíveis a olho nu, brilham intensamente nos céus do Chile. Outubro 2015
Perseids Meteor Shower in the Sky of Mourão
Some meteors crossing the sky of Mourão in Dark Sky® Alqueva reserve, against the background of Milky Way galaxy as seen just 1 day after the predicted peak, on 13th August. Perseids are a prolific meteor shower associated with the comet Swift–Tuttle. The Perseids are so called because the point from which they appear to come, called the radiant, lies in the constellation of Perseus. The background image is a single exposure with one meteor captured, the other seven meteors were combined as a result of a sequence of consecutive exposures to show the radiant of Perseids.
PT: Alguns meteoros cruzando o céu de Mourão na Reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva, contra o fundo da Via Láctea, um dia após o pico previsto a 13 de Agosto. As Perseidas são uma chuva de meteoros muito intensa, associada à passagem do cometa Swift-Tuttle. As Perseidas são assim chamadas porque o ponto a partir do qual elas parecem radiar, o radiante, encontra-se na constelação do Perseus. A imagem de fundo é uma única exposição com um meteoro capturado, os outros sete meteoros foram combinadas como resultado de uma sequência de exposições consecutivas para mostrar o radiante da chuva de estrelas mais activa do ano.
Milky Way above Valle de la Muerte in Chile
Milky Way and Zodiacal Light captured after the nautical twilight above Valle de la Muerte, in la Cordillera De La Sal, near San Pedro de Atacama, Chile – October 2015.
PT: Via Láctea e a Luz Zodiacal captada a seguir ao crepúsculo náutico acima do Vale da Morte, na cordilheira De La Sal, próxima a São Pedro de Atacama, no Chile. Outubro 2015
Bridge of Light – Connecting worlds, realities and dimensions
EN: A bridge could be a connection of two worlds, realities or dimensions, or simply two sides of lake as we can see on the image, but in a figurative sense, could also be a word that simbolizes a “perfect connection” between pristine and modern, the night sky and the landscape of our beautiful planet in suspension among the arm of gas and dust from our galaxy, the Milky Way. Reflected in the calm water of the largest manmade lake in Europe (250Km²) are the light of a slowly lonely car that took several seconds to cross the entire bridge. But also the light of the stars, which took hundred or millions of years at a speed of light to reach this particular point, ready to be recorded in this singular picture taken from one of the rare Dark Sky places on Earth, in Mourão, Alqueva Dark Sky Reserve.
PT: Uma ponte pode ser a conexão de dois mundos, realidades ou dimensões, ou simplesmente a ligação a duas margens de um lago. Em sentido figurado, também pode ser uma palavra que simboliza uma “conexão perfeita” entre o Prístino e o Moderno, o céu noturno e a paisagem do nosso belo planeta em suspensão entre o braço de gás e poeira cósmica da nossa galáxia, a Via Láctea. Refletida na água calma do maior lago artificial da Europa (250Km²), está não só a luz de um carro lento e solitário que levou vários segundos para completar a travessia desta ponte e gravar o seu trajecto no espelho de água do Alqueva, como também o brilho das estrelas que levou dezenas, centenas e milhares de anos a percorrer numa viajem à velocidade da luz, a distância que nos separa no longínquo vácuo Interestelar. Aqui ficaram registadas as impressões de luz de uma viagem no tempo e no espaço, na história da própria Terra, do próprio Homem, um ser inteligente mas ainda recente na cronologia da vida deste Universo, que nesta imagem singular nos é revelado em perfeita harmonia e sintonia com a natureza que nos rodeia, num dos raros lugares da Terra onde o céu da antiguidade, ainda pode ser apreciado, partilhado e lembrado. Mourão, Dark Sky® Alqueva.
A Cork Tree Surrounded by a Strong Presence of Airglow
EN: An all sky – fulldome view – of a huge Cork trees with a background full of green yellowed Air Glow (Atmospheric Chemiluminescence) that surrounds the entire Earth and can be seen from space. Sky of Alandroal | Alqueva Dark Sky
PT: Uma visão all sky de um grande sobreiro, onde por detrás deste e em pano de fundo, é possível observar a forte presença de Air glow, um fenómeno conhecido por luminescência fotoquímica da atmosfera com a presença de um tom verde amarelado junto ao horizonte, é uma emissão que rodeia todo o planeta Terra e pode ser vista do espaço. Céu do Alandroal | Dark Sky Alqueva
Zodiacal Light and Milky Way above Dark Sky Alqueva
EN: Only possible to observe in a really dark and special sky, like it is the Dark Sky® Alqueva Reserve, the tenuous presence of the Zodiacal Light forming almost a “V” with the opposite direction of Milky Way. The zodiacal light is a faint light beam that extends along the ecliptic plane, where they are the constellations of the Zodiac. It is caused by the scattering of sunlight in cosmic dust particles that can be found scattered all over the Solar System | Naveterra homestead, Sky of Alandroal
PT: Só possível de observar num céu bem escuro e especial como o da Reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva, a ténue presença da Luz Zodiacal forma quase um “V” em oposição à Via Láctea. A luz zodiacal é um feixe de luz fraca que se estende ao longo do plano da eclíptica, onde estão as constelações do Zodíaco. É causada pela dispersão da luz solar nas partículas de poeira cósmica que se podem encontrar espalhadas um pouco por todo o Sistema Solar | Herdade Naveterra, Céu do Alandroal
A Winy Way to the Milky Way
EN: Being one of the country’s largest wine producers, and also a huge attraction for the Wine Tourism the Esporão homestead displays a plantation with over 450 hectares of vineyards. Endless fields of grape parallely dotted by an endless veil of stars, only supplanted by the overwhelming presence of the Milky Way | Sky of Reguengos de Monsaraz
PT: Sendo um dos maiores produtores de vinho do país, e uma grande atracção para o Enoturismo, a Herdade do Esporão exibe uma plantação com mais 450 hectares de vinha. Campos infindáveis de uva, paralelamente salpicados por um manto infindável de estrelas, unicamente suplantado pela a arrebatadora presença da Via Látea | Céu de Reguengos de Monsaraz
Olive Trees from the Universe
EN: The Milky Way, our own galaxy as seen from Earth and Dark Sky® Alqueva Reserve, above an olive tree in a tonal nuance that characterizes different nights of the year, allowing to show that the same celestial object is never seen in the same way, without losing the particular beauty that characterizes it and makes us dreaming with the magic and charm of a scenario under the stars | Mourão and Barrancos, Sky of Dark Sky® Alqueva Reserve
PT: A Via Láctea, a nossa própria galáxia vista a partir da Terra e da Reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva, acima de uma oliveira, com as nuances tonais que caracterizam as diferentes noites do ano, permitindo que o mesmo objecto celeste nunca seja visto da mesma forma, sem nunca perder a particular beleza que o caracteriza e nos faz sonhar com a magia e encanto de um cenário à luz das estrelas | Mourão e Barrancos, Céu da Reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva
Olive Trees and Milky Way above Noudar Park
EN: The Milky Way above the Noudar Park | Sky of Barrancos
PT: A Via Láctea acima do Parque de Noudar | Céu de Barrancos
Dragged Milky Way above the Historical Tower of Esporão
EN: Milky Way from the Esporão Tower, considered one of the most important towers built during the transition from the Middle Ages to the Modern Age | Sky of Reguengos de Monsaraz
PT: A Via Láctea a partir da Torre do Esporão, considerada como uma das mais importantes torres construídas na passagem da Idade Média para a Idade Moderna | Céu de Reguengos de Monsaraz
Esporão – A Land of Vineyards in a Starry Sky
EN: Being one of the country’s largest wine producers, and also a huge attraction for the Wine Tourism the Esporão homestead displays a plantation with over 450 hectares of vineyards. Endless fields of grape paralely dotted by an endless veil of stars, only supplanted by the overwhelming presence of the Milky Way | Sky of Reguengos de Monsaraz
PT: Sendo um dos maiores produtores de vinho do país, e uma grande atracção para o Enoturismo, a Herdade do Esporão exibe uma plantação com mais 450 hectares de vinha. Campos infindáveis de uva, paralelamente salpicados por um manto infindável de estrelas, unicamente suplantado pela a arrebatadora presença da Via Látea | Céu de Reguengos de Monsaraz
Wine Tourism – 450 hectares of vineyards under the Milky Way
EN: Being one of the country’s largest wine producers, and also a huge attraction for the Wine Tourism the Esporão homestead displays a plantation with over 450 hectares of vineyards. Endless fields of grape parallely dotted by an endless veil of stars, only supplanted by the overwhelming presence of the Milky Way | Sky of Reguengos de Monsaraz
PT: Sendo um dos maiores produtores de vinho do país, e uma grande atracção para o Enoturismo, a Herdade do Esporão exibe uma plantação com mais 450 hectares de vinha. Campos infindáveis de uva, paralelamente salpicados por um manto infindável de estrelas, unicamente suplantado pela a arrebatadora presença da Via Látea | Céu de Reguengos de Monsaraz
Olive Trees under the Milky Way
EN: An “All Sky” view revealing the arm and center of Milky Way above the olive trees, that so well characterizes the Alentejo region as well as the quality of its olive oil | Sky Barrancos
PT: Um “All Sky” revelando o braço e centro da Via Láctea acima das oliveiras que tão bem caracterizam a região do Alentejo e a qualidade do seu Azeite daí proveniente | Céu de Barrancos
The Colors of Alentejo Even in the Night
EN: Vertical vision of the Milky Way, our own galaxy as seen from Earth and Dark Sky® Alqueva Reserve in a tonal nuance that characterizes different nights of the year, allowing to show that the same celestial object is never seen in the same way, without losing the particular beauty that characterizes it and makes us dreaming with the magic and charm of a scenario under the stars | Mourão and Barrancos, Sky of Dark Sky® Alqueva Reserve
PT: Visão vertical da Via Láctea, a nossa própria galáxia vista a partir da Terra e da Reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva nas nuances tonais que caracterizam as diferentes noites do ano, permitindo que o mesmo objecto celeste nunca seja visto da mesma forma, sem nunca perder a particular beleza que o caracteriza e nos faz sonhar com a magia e encanto de um cenário à luz das estrelas | Mourão e Barrancos, Céu da Reserva Dark Sky® Alqueva
The Dark Sky “Planet”
EN: An “All Sky” view revealing the arm and center of Milky Way above the olive trees, that so well characterizes the Alentejo region as well as the quality of its olive oil | Sky Barrancos
PT: Um “All Sky” revelando o braço e centro da Via Láctea acima das oliveiras que tão bem caracterizam a região do Alentejo e a qualidade do seu Azeite daí proveniente | Céu de Barrancos
Milky Way Arm in the Dark Sky Alqueva Reserve
The beauty of the entire arched arm of Milky Way as seen from the northern hemisphere, a panoramic view that rises above the lands included on the route of Dark Sky® Alqueva Reserve. Nature Park of Noudar | Alqueva Dark Sky Reserve – Portugal
The Arc of Milky Way in the Twilight with the Moon and Zodiacal Light above VLT
The entire Arc of Milky Way full of gas and dust can be seen in this panoramic lovely view from the southern sky, captured in the end of nautical twilight, above the Very Large Telescope platform. At left of the small tower, above the horizon, the bright object visible is not a star itself, but the great globular cluster Omega Centauri. Closer to left in the beginning of Milky Way arc, are spotted the bright stars of Alpha and Beta Centauri. In the middle of the image, the strong light of crescent moon is shining above the Antu telescope, the first one. Above the moon, we can see the planet Saturn, the orange star Antares from Scorpius constellation, and the dark streaks that are part of Rho Ophiuchi cloud complex, which connects this region to the main arm of Milky Way with more then 200º from side to side. In the background of this same region, a faint white light is visible, called the Zodiacal Light. In the foreground at right, we can see the Yepun telescope, reflecting a silver color coming from the moon reflection on its metallic surface. In the extremely right edge of the image, the Andromeda galaxy is even visible as an elongated diffuse dot.
The Very Large Telescope (VLT) is a telescope operated by the ESO – European Southern Observatory on Cerro Paranal in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. The VLT is the world’s most advanced optical instrument, consisting of four Unit Telescopes with main mirrors of 8.2m diameter, which are generally used separately but can be used together to achieve very high angular resolution. The four separate optical telescopes are known as Antu, Kueyen, Melipal and Yepun, which are all words for astronomical objects in the Mapuche language, with optical elements that can combine them into an astronomical interferometer (VLTI), which is used to resolve small objects. The interferometer is complemented by four movable Auxiliary Telescopes (ATs) of 1.8 m aperture. The 8.2m diameter Unit Telescopes can also be used individually. With one such telescope, images of celestial objects as faint as magnitude 30 can be obtained in a one-hour exposure. This corresponds to seeing objects that are four billion (four thousand million) times fainter than what can be seen with the unaided eye. The telescopes can work together, to form a giant ‘interferometer’, the ESO Very Large Telescope Interferometer, allowing astronomers to see details up to 25 times finer than with the individual telescopes. The light beams are combined in the VLTI using a complex system of mirrors in underground tunnels where the light paths must be kept equal to distances less than 1/1000 mm over a hundred metres. With this kind of precision the VLTI can reconstruct images with an angular resolution of milliarcseconds, equivalent to distinguishing the two headlights of a car at the distance of the Moon.
Image taken taken in 15/10/2015 from Cerro Paranal, Atacama desert, Chile
Galactic center above megalithic monument of Xerez
Central region of the Milky Way in the background of Cromeleque do Xerez, a megalithic monument consists of 50 granite menhirs erected between the 3rd and 4th millennium BC. 21/04/2015. Monsaraz | Alqueva Dark Sky Reserve – Portugal!
Milky Way Arch above Xerez Cromlech
Panoramic view of our own galaxy, the Milky Way arm as a background of Cromeleque do Xerez. 18/06/2015. Monsaraz | Alqueva Dark Sky Reserve – Portugal
Wine & The Milky Way
The excellence quality of the wines from this territory, producer of some of the best wines in the world, was a vital contribution that allowed Reguengos de Monsaraz, the international recognition that raised the “European Wine City of 2015”. In the background starry sky of Milky Way, there will be better company than an exquisite glass of wine? | Sky of Monsaraz
Reddish Airglow Bands on ALMA sky
In the background, we can see the arm of Milky Way full of gas and dust with the Zodiacal Light crossing the sky. In the upper left part of the image, is also visible a reddish airglow bands. In the foreground, is also visible one antenna (DV-21) of 12 meters in diameter, pointing to some place of the cold Universe. This are the first tests to experiment the largest configuration that ALMA can support, with antennas spreaded over distances up to 16 km. The array thus simulates a giant, single telescope much larger than any that could actually be built. In fact, ALMA has a maximum resolution which is even better than that achieved, at visible wavelengths, by the Hubble Space Telescope.
The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) is an astronomical interferometer of radio telescopes in the Atacama desert of northern Chile. Since a high and dry site is crucial to millimeter wavelength operations, the array has been constructed on the Chajnantor plateau at 5,000 meters altitude, near Llano de Chajnantor Observatory and Atacama Pathfinder Experiment. Consisting of 66 12-meter (39 ft), and 7-meter (23 ft) diameter radio telescopes observing at millimeter and submillimeter wavelengths, ALMA is expected to provide insight on star birth during the early universe and detailed imaging of local star and planet formation. ALMA is a single telescope of revolutionary design, composed initially of 66 high-precision antennas, and operating at wavelengths of 0.32 to 3.6 mm. Its main 12-metre array has fifty antennas, 12 metres in diameter, acting together as a single telescope — an interferometer. An additional compact array of four 12-metre and twelve 7-metre antennas complements this. The 66 ALMA antennas can be arranged in different configurations, where the maximum distance between antennas can vary from 150 metres to 16 kilometres, which will give ALMA a powerful variable “zoom”. It will be able to probe the Universe at millimetre and submillimetre wavelengths with unprecedented sensitivity and resolution, with a vision up to ten times sharper than the Hubble Space Telescope, and complementing images made with the VLT Interferometer. Light at these wavelengths comes from vast cold clouds in interstellar space, at temperatures only a few tens of degrees above absolute zero, and from some of the earliest and most distant galaxies in the Universe. Astronomers can use it to study the chemical and physical conditions in molecular clouds — the dense regions of gas and dust where new stars are being born. Often these regions of the Universe are dark and obscured in visible light, but they shine brightly in the millimetre and submillimetre part of the spectrum. ALMA is the most powerful telescope for observing the cool Universe — molecular gas and dust.
ALMA will study the building blocks of stars, planetary systems, galaxies and life itself. By providing scientists with detailed images of stars and planets being born in gas clouds near our Solar System, and detecting distant galaxies forming at the edge of the observable Universe, which we see as they were roughly ten billion years ago, it lets astronomers address some of the deepest questions of our cosmic origins.
Image taken taken in 14/10/2015 from Chajnantor plateau, Atacama desert, Chile.
AllSky of VLT Yepun
In the background of this fish-eye fulldome picture, at the left side of Yepun VLT Telescope, we can see the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds, while in center right of the image, the Zodiacal Light is coming up above the Milky Way that is lying behind the horizon.
The Very Large Telescope (VLT) is a telescope operated by the ESO – European Southern Observatory on Cerro Paranal in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. The VLT is the world’s most advanced optical instrument, consisting of four Unit Telescopes with main mirrors of 8.2m diameter, which are generally used separately but can be used together to achieve very high angular resolution. The four separate optical telescopes are known as Antu, Kueyen, Melipal and Yepun, which are all words for astronomical objects in the Mapuche language, with optical elements that can combine them into an astronomical interferometer (VLTI), which is used to resolve small objects. The interferometer is complemented by four movable Auxiliary Telescopes (ATs) of 1.8 m aperture. The 8.2m diameter Unit Telescopes can also be used individually. With one such telescope, images of celestial objects as faint as magnitude 30 can be obtained in a one-hour exposure. This corresponds to seeing objects that are four billion (four thousand million) times fainter than what can be seen with the unaided eye. The telescopes can work together, to form a giant ‘interferometer’, the ESO Very Large Telescope Interferometer, allowing astronomers to see details up to 25 times finer than with the individual telescopes. The light beams are combined in the VLTI using a complex system of mirrors in underground tunnels where the light paths must be kept equal to distances less than 1/1000 mm over a hundred metres. With this kind of precision the VLTI can reconstruct images with an angular resolution of milliarcseconds, equivalent to distinguishing the two headlights of a car at the distance of the Moon.
Image taken taken in 15/10/2015 from Cerro Paranal, Atacama desert, Chile.
Fulldome View of Reddish Airglow Bands and Milky Way on ALMA
In the background, we can see in this fish-eye fulldome view, the arm of Milky Way full of gas and dust with the Zodiacal Light crossing the sky. In the upper left part of the image, is also visible a reddish airglow bands. In the foreground, is also visible one antenna (DV-21) of 12 meters in diameter, pointing to some place of the cold Universe. This are the first tests to experiment the largest configuration that ALMA can support, with antennas spread over distances up to 16 km. The array thus simulates a giant, single telescope much larger than any that could actually be built. In fact, ALMA has a maximum resolution which is even better than that achieved, at visible wavelengths, by the Hubble Space Telescope.
The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) is an astronomical interferometer of radio telescopes in the Atacama desert of northern Chile. Since a high and dry site is crucial to millimeter wavelength operations, the array has been constructed on the Chajnantor plateau at 5,000 meters altitude, near Llano de Chajnantor Observatory and Atacama Pathfinder Experiment. Consisting of 66 12-meter (39 ft), and 7-meter (23 ft) diameter radio telescopes observing at millimeter and submillimeter wavelengths, ALMA is expected to provide insight on star birth during the early universe and detailed imaging of local star and planet formation. ALMA is a single telescope of revolutionary design, composed initially of 66 high-precision antennas, and operating at wavelengths of 0.32 to 3.6 mm. Its main 12-metre array has fifty antennas, 12 metres in diameter, acting together as a single telescope — an interferometer. An additional compact array of four 12-metre and twelve 7-metre antennas complements this. The 66 ALMA antennas can be arranged in different configurations, where the maximum distance between antennas can vary from 150 metres to 16 kilometres, which will give ALMA a powerful variable “zoom”. It will be able to probe the Universe at millimetre and submillimetre wavelengths with unprecedented sensitivity and resolution, with a vision up to ten times sharper than the Hubble Space Telescope, and complementing images made with the VLT Interferometer. Light at these wavelengths comes from vast cold clouds in interstellar space, at temperatures only a few tens of degrees above absolute zero, and from some of the earliest and most distant galaxies in the Universe. Astronomers can use it to study the chemical and physical conditions in molecular clouds — the dense regions of gas and dust where new stars are being born. Often these regions of the Universe are dark and obscured in visible light, but they shine brightly in the millimetre and submillimetre part of the spectrum. ALMA is the most powerful telescope for observing the cool Universe — molecular gas and dust.
ALMA will study the building blocks of stars, planetary systems, galaxies and life itself. By providing scientists with detailed images of stars and planets being born in gas clouds near our Solar System, and detecting distant galaxies forming at the edge of the observable Universe, which we see as they were roughly ten billion years ago, it lets astronomers address some of the deepest questions of our cosmic origins.
Image taken taken in 14/10/2015 from Chajnantor plateau, Atacama desert, Chile.
Skygazing on Cerro Paranal Observatory
A guide from ESO is relaxing and enjoying the beautiful and impressive sky of Cerro Paranal while is waiting for a better condition in the weather forecast. In the Background, an unusual cloudy sky is hiding part of the Milky Way, while the moon shines behind the moving clouds, illuminating the closed dome of the Auxiliary Telescopes (ATs) of 1.8 m aperture.
The Very Large Telescope (VLT) is a telescope operated by the ESO – European Southern Observatory on Cerro Paranal in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. The VLT is the world’s most advanced optical instrument, consisting of four Unit Telescopes with main mirrors of 8.2m diameter, which are generally used separately but can be used together to achieve very high angular resolution. The four separate optical telescopes are known as Antu, Kueyen, Melipal and Yepun, which are all words for astronomical objects in the Mapuche language, with optical elements that can combine them into an astronomical interferometer (VLTI), which is used to resolve small objects. The interferometer is complemented by four movable Auxiliary Telescopes (ATs) of 1.8 m aperture. The 8.2m diameter Unit Telescopes can also be used individually. With one such telescope, images of celestial objects as faint as magnitude 30 can be obtained in a one-hour exposure. This corresponds to seeing objects that are four billion (four thousand million) times fainter than what can be seen with the unaided eye. The telescopes can work together, to form a giant ‘interferometer’, the ESO Very Large Telescope Interferometer, allowing astronomers to see details up to 25 times finer than with the individual telescopes. The light beams are combined in the VLTI using a complex system of mirrors in underground tunnels where the light paths must be kept equal to distances less than 1/1000 mm over a hundred metres. With this kind of precision the VLTI can reconstruct images with an angular resolution of milliarcseconds, equivalent to distinguishing the two headlights of a car at the distance of the Moon.
Image taken taken in 16/10/2015 from Cerro Paranal, Atacama desert, Chile.
Eta Carinae above the Dome of Residencia
The incredibly dark and transparent sky of Paranal, in the Atacama Desert, Chile, is the perfect place to see the bright emission nebula Eta Carinae (almost in the center of the image). Below we also can see the violet-red color coming from the Running Chicken Nebula (IC2944) and below the dark band of clouds and above the horizon, is also visible the red-hued giant star Gacrux as well as the blue-hued giant star Mimosa, both from the Southern Cross constellation. The hazy atmosphere works as a natural diffuse filter, enhancing the saturation and revealing the real color temperature of each stars. More bluish they are, more hottest is their temperature. The orange-red stars, are coldest. The white dome is the Residencia for astronomers that are working on VLT Telescopes operated by ESO.
Image taken taken in 17/10/2015 from Cerro Paranal, Atacama desert, Chile.
A Panoramic view to the top of Cerro Paranal
Panoramic view from VISTA telescope to the top of Cerro Paranal (at left) where it is located the VLT platform. In the right side we can see the Milky Way trying to show up behind a dark band of clouds, also covering the Moonset. The Very Large Telescope (VLT) is a telescope operated by the ESO – European Southern Observatory on Cerro Paranal in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. The VLT is the world’s most advanced optical instrument, consisting of four Unit Telescopes with main mirrors of 8.2m diameter, which are generally used separately but can be used together to achieve very high angular resolution. The four separate optical telescopes are known as Antu, Kueyen, Melipal and Yepun, which are all words for astronomical objects in the Mapuche language, with optical elements that can combine them into an astronomical interferometer (VLTI), which is used to resolve small objects. The interferometer is complemented by four movable Auxiliary Telescopes (ATs) of 1.8 m aperture.
Image taken taken in 17/10/2015 from Cerro Paranal, Atacama desert, Chile.
AllSky view of the Milky Way Lying in the horizon of VLT
This fish-eye fulldome image shows the Milky Way lying parallel to the horizon in the background of the The Very Large Telescope (VLT) consisting of four Unit Telescopes with main mirrors of 8.2m diameter, known as Antu, Kueyen, Melipal and Yepun (at right).
The Very Large Telescope (VLT) is a telescope operated by the ESO – European Southern Observatory on Cerro Paranal in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. The VLT is the world’s most advanced optical instrument, consisting of four Unit Telescopes with main mirrors of 8.2m diameter, which are generally used separately but can be used together to achieve very high angular resolution. The four separate optical telescopes are known as Antu, Kueyen, Melipal and Yepun, which are all words for astronomical objects in the Mapuche language, with optical elements that can combine them into an astronomical interferometer (VLTI), which is used to resolve small objects. The interferometer is complemented by four movable Auxiliary Telescopes (ATs) of 1.8 m aperture. The 8.2m diameter Unit Telescopes can also be used individually. With one such telescope, images of celestial objects as faint as magnitude 30 can be obtained in a one-hour exposure. This corresponds to seeing objects that are four billion (four thousand million) times fainter than what can be seen with the unaided eye. The telescopes can work together, to form a giant ‘interferometer’, the ESO Very Large Telescope Interferometer, allowing astronomers to see details up to 25 times finer than with the individual telescopes. The light beams are combined in the VLTI using a complex system of mirrors in underground tunnels where the light paths must be kept equal to distances less than 1/1000 mm over a hundred metres. With this kind of precision the VLTI can reconstruct images with an angular resolution of milliarcseconds, equivalent to distinguishing the two headlights of a car at the distance of the Moon.
Image taken taken in 15/10/2015 from Cerro Paranal, Atacama desert, Chile.
Alone with ALMA
In the background we can see the arm of Milky Way full of gas and dust with the Zodiacal Light crossing the sky. In the foreground, is also visible one antenna (DV-21) of 12 meters in diameter, pointing to some place of the cold Universe. This are the first tests to experiment the largest configuration that ALMA can support, with antennas spreaded over distances up to 16 km. The array thus simulates a giant, single telescope much larger than any that could actually be built. In fact, ALMA has a maximum resolution which is even better than that achieved, at visible wavelengths, by the Hubble Space Telescope.
The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) is an astronomical interferometer of radio telescopes in the Atacama desert of northern Chile. Since a high and dry site is crucial to millimeter wavelength operations, the array has been constructed on the Chajnantor plateau at 5,000 meters altitude, near Llano de Chajnantor Observatory and Atacama Pathfinder Experiment. Consisting of 66 12-meter (39 ft), and 7-meter (23 ft) diameter radio telescopes observing at millimeter and submillimeter wavelengths, ALMA is expected to provide insight on star birth during the early universe and detailed imaging of local star and planet formation. ALMA is a single telescope of revolutionary design, composed initially of 66 high-precision antennas, and operating at wavelengths of 0.32 to 3.6 mm. Its main 12-metre array has fifty antennas, 12 metres in diameter, acting together as a single telescope — an interferometer. An additional compact array of four 12-metre and twelve 7-metre antennas complements this. The 66 ALMA antennas can be arranged in different configurations, where the maximum distance between antennas can vary from 150 metres to 16 kilometres, which will give ALMA a powerful variable “zoom”. It will be able to probe the Universe at millimetre and submillimetre wavelengths with unprecedented sensitivity and resolution, with a vision up to ten times sharper than the Hubble Space Telescope, and complementing images made with the VLT Interferometer. Light at these wavelengths comes from vast cold clouds in interstellar space, at temperatures only a few tens of degrees above absolute zero, and from some of the earliest and most distant galaxies in the Universe. Astronomers can use it to study the chemical and physical conditions in molecular clouds — the dense regions of gas and dust where new stars are being born. Often these regions of the Universe are dark and obscured in visible light, but they shine brightly in the millimetre and submillimetre part of the spectrum. ALMA is the most powerful telescope for observing the cool Universe — molecular gas and dust.
ALMA will study the building blocks of stars, planetary systems, galaxies and life itself. By providing scientists with detailed images of stars and planets being born in gas clouds near our Solar System, and detecting distant galaxies forming at the edge of the observable Universe, which we see as they were roughly ten billion years ago, it lets astronomers address some of the deepest questions of our cosmic origins.
Image taken taken in 14/10/2015 from Chajnantor plateau, Atacama desert, Chile.
Reddish Airglow in a Fulldome view of Very Large Telescope
In this fish-eye fulldome picture, we can see a partial cloudy sky, that can promote sometimes the appearance of a beautiful show. Specially, if we have a night of Moonlight that can illuminate and show a strange game of ghostly shapes in the clouds. In the background a starry sky with a shy Milky Way is showing a strong presence of reddish airglow in the opposite direction of the Very Large Telescope.
The Very Large Telescope (VLT) is a telescope operated by the ESO – European Southern Observatory on Cerro Paranal in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. The VLT is the world’s most advanced optical instrument, consisting of four Unit Telescopes with main mirrors of 8.2m diameter, which are generally used separately but can be used together to achieve very high angular resolution. The four separate optical telescopes are known as Antu, Kueyen, Melipal and Yepun, which are all words for astronomical objects in the Mapuche language, with optical elements that can combine them into an astronomical interferometer (VLTI), which is used to resolve small objects. The interferometer is complemented by four movable Auxiliary Telescopes (ATs) of 1.8 m aperture. The 8.2m diameter Unit Telescopes can also be used individually. With one such telescope, images of celestial objects as faint as magnitude 30 can be obtained in a one-hour exposure. This corresponds to seeing objects that are four billion (four thousand million) times fainter than what can be seen with the unaided eye. The telescopes can work together, to form a giant ‘interferometer’, the ESO Very Large Telescope Interferometer, allowing astronomers to see details up to 25 times finer than with the individual telescopes. The light beams are combined in the VLTI using a complex system of mirrors in underground tunnels where the light paths must be kept equal to distances less than 1/1000 mm over a hundred metres. With this kind of precision the VLTI can reconstruct images with an angular resolution of milliarcseconds, equivalent to distinguishing the two headlights of a car at the distance of the Moon.
Image taken taken in 16/10/2015 from Cerro Paranal, Atacama desert, Chile.
The First Portuguese Official Expedition to ALMA
Apolónia Rodrigues (Dark Sky Alqueva Coordinator) and Miguel Claro (Astrophotographer), during the first portuguese oficial visit to ESO – Cerro Paranal and ALMA. The picture was taken at 5000-m high, on the Chajnantor plateau in the Chilean Andes, where the European Southern Observatory (ESO), together with its international partners, are operating the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA).
The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) is an astronomical interferometer of radio telescopes in the Atacama desert of northern Chile. Since a high and dry site is crucial to millimeter wavelength operations, the array has been constructed on the Chajnantor plateau at 5,000 meters altitude, near Llano de Chajnantor Observatory and Atacama Pathfinder Experiment. Consisting of 66 12-meter (39 ft), and 7-meter (23 ft) diameter radio telescopes observing at millimeter and submillimeter wavelengths, ALMA is expected to provide insight on star birth during the early universe and detailed imaging of local star and planet formation. ALMA is a single telescope of revolutionary design, composed initially of 66 high-precision antennas, and operating at wavelengths of 0.32 to 3.6 mm. Its main 12-metre array has fifty antennas, 12 metres in diameter, acting together as a single telescope — an interferometer. An additional compact array of four 12-metre and twelve 7-metre antennas complements this. The 66 ALMA antennas can be arranged in different configurations, where the maximum distance between antennas can vary from 150 metres to 16 kilometres, which will give ALMA a powerful variable “zoom”. It will be able to probe the Universe at millimetre and submillimetre wavelengths with unprecedented sensitivity and resolution, with a vision up to ten times sharper than the Hubble Space Telescope, and complementing images made with the VLT Interferometer. Light at these wavelengths comes from vast cold clouds in interstellar space, at temperatures only a few tens of degrees above absolute zero, and from some of the earliest and most distant galaxies in the Universe. Astronomers can use it to study the chemical and physical conditions in molecular clouds — the dense regions of gas and dust where new stars are being born. Often these regions of the Universe are dark and obscured in visible light, but they shine brightly in the millimetre and submillimetre part of the spectrum. ALMA is the most powerful telescope for observing the cool Universe — molecular gas and dust.
ALMA will study the building blocks of stars, planetary systems, galaxies and life itself. By providing scientists with detailed images of stars and planets being born in gas clouds near our Solar System, and detecting distant galaxies forming at the edge of the observable Universe, which we see as they were roughly ten billion years ago, it lets astronomers address some of the deepest questions of our cosmic origins.
Image taken taken in 14/10/2015 from Chajnantor plateau, Atacama desert, Chile.
The Back of DV-21 ALMA Antenna with the Milky Way
In the background we can see the arm of Milky Way full of gas and dust with the Zodiacal Light crossing the sky. In the foreground, is also visible the back of (DV-21) antenna -12 meters in diameter – pointing to some place of the cold Universe. This are the first tests to experiment the largest configuration that ALMA can support, with antennas spreaded over distances up to 16 km. The array thus simulates a giant, single telescope much larger than any that could actually be built. In fact, ALMA has a maximum resolution which is even better than that achieved, at visible wavelengths, by the Hubble Space Telescope.
The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) is an astronomical interferometer of radio telescopes in the Atacama desert of northern Chile. Since a high and dry site is crucial to millimeter wavelength operations, the array has been constructed on the Chajnantor plateau at 5,000 meters altitude, near Llano de Chajnantor Observatory and Atacama Pathfinder Experiment. Consisting of 66 12-meter (39 ft), and 7-meter (23 ft) diameter radio telescopes observing at millimeter and submillimeter wavelengths, ALMA is expected to provide insight on star birth during the early universe and detailed imaging of local star and planet formation. ALMA is a single telescope of revolutionary design, composed initially of 66 high-precision antennas, and operating at wavelengths of 0.32 to 3.6 mm. Its main 12-metre array has fifty antennas, 12 metres in diameter, acting together as a single telescope — an interferometer. An additional compact array of four 12-metre and twelve 7-metre antennas complements this. The 66 ALMA antennas can be arranged in different configurations, where the maximum distance between antennas can vary from 150 metres to 16 kilometres, which will give ALMA a powerful variable “zoom”. It will be able to probe the Universe at millimetre and submillimetre wavelengths with unprecedented sensitivity and resolution, with a vision up to ten times sharper than the Hubble Space Telescope, and complementing images made with the VLT Interferometer. Light at these wavelengths comes from vast cold clouds in interstellar space, at temperatures only a few tens of degrees above absolute zero, and from some of the earliest and most distant galaxies in the Universe. Astronomers can use it to study the chemical and physical conditions in molecular clouds — the dense regions of gas and dust where new stars are being born. Often these regions of the Universe are dark and obscured in visible light, but they shine brightly in the millimetre and submillimetre part of the spectrum. ALMA is the most powerful telescope for observing the cool Universe — molecular gas and dust.
ALMA will study the building blocks of stars, planetary systems, galaxies and life itself. By providing scientists with detailed images of stars and planets being born in gas clouds near our Solar System, and detecting distant galaxies forming at the edge of the observable Universe, which we see as they were roughly ten billion years ago, it lets astronomers address some of the deepest questions of our cosmic origins.
Image taken taken in 14/10/2015 from Chajnantor plateau, Atacama desert, Chile.
Gegenschein, Milky Way and Airglow in a Fulldome Show
In the upper right side of the sky in this fish-eye (fulldome) picture, we can see the Gegenschein, that is a faint brightening of the night sky in the region of the antisolar point. like the zodiacal light, the gegenschein is sunlight scattered by interplanetary dust. Most of this dust is orbiting the Sun in about the ecliptic plane. It is distinguished from zodiacal light by its high angle of reflection of the incident sunlight on the dust particles. In the upper left side, is also visible the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) and above it, the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC). Surrounding the entire sky we can see the presence of green airglow, while, below, the Milky Way is setting in the horizon behind the VLT.
The Very Large Telescope (VLT) is a telescope operated by the ESO – European Southern Observatory on Cerro Paranal in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. The VLT is the world’s most advanced optical instrument, consisting of four Unit Telescopes with main mirrors of 8.2m diameter, which are generally used separately but can be used together to achieve very high angular resolution. The four separate optical telescopes are known as Antu, Kueyen, Melipal and Yepun, which are all words for astronomical objects in the Mapuche language, with optical elements that can combine them into an astronomical interferometer (VLTI), which is used to resolve small objects. The interferometer is complemented by four movable Auxiliary Telescopes (ATs) of 1.8 m aperture.
Image taken taken in 15/10/2015 from Cerro Paranal, Atacama desert, Chile.
Iridium Flare above the Milky Way in Paranal
Milky Way lies parallel to the horizon in the background of the The Very Large Telescope (VLT) consisting of four Unit Telescopes with main mirrors of 8.2m diameter, known as Antu, Kueyen, Melipal and Yepun (at right). In the left edge of the image and above the Milky Way, we can see what seems to be not a meteor but an Iridium Flare trail.
The Very Large Telescope (VLT) is a telescope operated by the ESO – European Southern Observatory on Cerro Paranal in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. The VLT is the world’s most advanced optical instrument, which are generally used separately but can be used together to achieve very high angular resolution. The four separate optical telescopes are known as Antu, Kueyen, Melipal and Yepun, which are all words for astronomical objects in the Mapuche language, with optical elements that can combine them into an astronomical interferometer (VLTI), which is used to resolve small objects. The interferometer is complemented by four movable Auxiliary Telescopes (ATs) of 1.8 m aperture. The 8.2m diameter Unit Telescopes can also be used individually. With one such telescope, images of celestial objects as faint as magnitude 30 can be obtained in a one-hour exposure. This corresponds to seeing objects that are four billion (four thousand million) times fainter than what can be seen with the unaided eye. The telescopes can work together, to form a giant ‘interferometer’, the ESO Very Large Telescope Interferometer, allowing astronomers to see details up to 25 times finer than with the individual telescopes. The light beams are combined in the VLTI using a complex system of mirrors in underground tunnels where the light paths must be kept equal to distances less than 1/1000 mm over a hundred metres. With this kind of precision the VLTI can reconstruct images with an angular resolution of milliarcseconds, equivalent to distinguishing the two headlights of a car at the distance of the Moon.
Image taken taken in 15/10/2015 from Cerro Paranal, Atacama desert, Chile.
Stunning view of the Milky Way above ALMA along with the Moonset
In the background we can see the heart of our Galaxy full of gas and dust, star clusters and emission nebulae, as well as the orange star Antares from Scorpius constellation and the dark dust that connects this region to the main arm of Milky Way. Below at right, a faint white light called the Zodiacal Light is very well visible, coming up as a backlight behind the antenna of ALMA (DV-21) with12 meters in diameter, is capturing the wavelengths from vast cold clouds in the interstellar space. Above the horizon we also can see an orange glow coming from the moonset. This are the first tests to experiment the largest configuration that ALMA can support, with antennas spread over distances up to 16 km. The array thus simulates a giant, single telescope much larger than any that could actually be built. In fact, ALMA has a maximum resolution which is even better than that achieved, at visible wavelengths, by the Hubble Space Telescope.
The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) is an astronomical interferometer of radio telescopes in the Atacama desert of northern Chile. Since a high and dry site is crucial to millimeter wavelength operations, the array has been constructed on the Chajnantor plateau at 5,000 meters altitude, near Llano de Chajnantor Observatory and Atacama Pathfinder Experiment. Consisting of 66 12-meter (39 ft), and 7-meter (23 ft) diameter radio telescopes observing at millimeter and submillimeter wavelengths, ALMA is expected to provide insight on star birth during the early universe and detailed imaging of local star and planet formation. ALMA is a single telescope of revolutionary design, composed initially of 66 high-precision antennas, and operating at wavelengths of 0.32 to 3.6 mm. Its main 12-metre array has fifty antennas, 12 metres in diameter, acting together as a single telescope — an interferometer. An additional compact array of four 12-metre and twelve 7-metre antennas complements this. The 66 ALMA antennas can be arranged in different configurations, where the maximum distance between antennas can vary from 150 metres to 16 kilometres, which will give ALMA a powerful variable “zoom”. It will be able to probe the Universe at millimetre and submillimetre wavelengths with unprecedented sensitivity and resolution, with a vision up to ten times sharper than the Hubble Space Telescope, and complementing images made with the VLT Interferometer. Light at these wavelengths comes from vast cold clouds in interstellar space, at temperatures only a few tens of degrees above absolute zero, and from some of the earliest and most distant galaxies in the Universe. Astronomers can use it to study the chemical and physical conditions in molecular clouds — the dense regions of gas and dust where new stars are being born. Often these regions of the Universe are dark and obscured in visible light, but they shine brightly in the millimetre and submillimetre part of the spectrum. ALMA is the most powerful telescope for observing the cool Universe — molecular gas and dust. ALMA will study the building blocks of stars, planetary systems, galaxies and life itself. By providing scientists with detailed images of stars and planets being born in gas clouds near our Solar System, and detecting distant galaxies forming at the edge of the observable Universe, which we see as they were roughly ten billion years ago, it lets astronomers address some of the deepest questions of our cosmic origins.
Image taken taken in 14/10/2015 from Chajnantor plateau, Atacama desert, Chile.
Fulldome View of Zodiacal Light and Milky Way on ALMA
In the background, we can see in this fish-eye fulldome view, the arm of Milky Way full of gas and dust with the Zodiacal Light crossing the sky. In the foreground, is also visible one antenna (DV-21) of 12 meters in diameter, pointing to some place of the cold Universe. This are the first tests to experiment the largest configuration that ALMA can support, with antennas spreaded over distances up to 16 km. The array thus simulates a giant, single telescope much larger than any that could actually be built. In fact, ALMA has a maximum resolution which is even better than that achieved, at visible wavelengths, by the Hubble Space Telescope.
The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) is an astronomical interferometer of radio telescopes in the Atacama desert of northern Chile. Since a high and dry site is crucial to millimeter wavelength operations, the array has been constructed on the Chajnantor plateau at 5,000 meters altitude, near Llano de Chajnantor Observatory and Atacama Pathfinder Experiment. Consisting of 66 12-meter (39 ft), and 7-meter (23 ft) diameter radio telescopes observing at millimeter and submillimeter wavelengths, ALMA is expected to provide insight on star birth during the early universe and detailed imaging of local star and planet formation. ALMA is a single telescope of revolutionary design, composed initially of 66 high-precision antennas, and operating at wavelengths of 0.32 to 3.6 mm. Its main 12-metre array has fifty antennas, 12 metres in diameter, acting together as a single telescope — an interferometer. An additional compact array of four 12-metre and twelve 7-metre antennas complements this. The 66 ALMA antennas can be arranged in different configurations, where the maximum distance between antennas can vary from 150 metres to 16 kilometres, which will give ALMA a powerful variable “zoom”. It will be able to probe the Universe at millimetre and submillimetre wavelengths with unprecedented sensitivity and resolution, with a vision up to ten times sharper than the Hubble Space Telescope, and complementing images made with the VLT Interferometer. Light at these wavelengths comes from vast cold clouds in interstellar space, at temperatures only a few tens of degrees above absolute zero, and from some of the earliest and most distant galaxies in the Universe. Astronomers can use it to study the chemical and physical conditions in molecular clouds — the dense regions of gas and dust where new stars are being born. Often these regions of the Universe are dark and obscured in visible light, but they shine brightly in the millimetre and submillimetre part of the spectrum. ALMA is the most powerful telescope for observing the cool Universe — molecular gas and dust.
ALMA will study the building blocks of stars, planetary systems, galaxies and life itself. By providing scientists with detailed images of stars and planets being born in gas clouds near our Solar System, and detecting distant galaxies forming at the edge of the observable Universe, which we see as they were roughly ten billion years ago, it lets astronomers address some of the deepest questions of our cosmic origins.
Image taken taken in 14/10/2015 from Chajnantor plateau, Atacama desert, Chile.
Magellanic Clouds, Auxiliary Telescopes and the Milky Way
In the foregroound we can see the four movable Auxiliary Telescopes of 1.8 meters available in the VLT plataform, operating with the dome open, while in the background near the horizon is borning the Canopus star and above it, in the center of the picture, lies the Large (LMC) and Small (SMC) Magellanic Clouds showing its details and structure. Magellanic Clouds are two satellite galaxies from our own Milky Way. From down and along the upper right corner we can find the beautiful presence of Milky Way, our cosmic home.
The Very Large Telescope (VLT) is a telescope operated by the ESO – European Southern Observatory on Cerro Paranal in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. The VLT is the world’s most advanced optical instrument, consisting of four Unit Telescopes with main mirrors of 8.2m diameter, which are generally used separately but can be used together to achieve very high angular resolution. The four separate optical telescopes are known as Antu, Kueyen, Melipal and Yepun, which are all words for astronomical objects in the Mapuche language, with optical elements that can combine them into an astronomical interferometer (VLTI), which is used to resolve small objects. The interferometer is complemented by four movable Auxiliary Telescopes (ATs) of 1.8 m aperture. The 8.2m diameter Unit Telescopes can also be used individually. With one such telescope, images of celestial objects as faint as magnitude 30 can be obtained in a one-hour exposure. This corresponds to seeing objects that are four billion (four thousand million) times fainter than what can be seen with the unaided eye. The telescopes can work together, to form a giant ‘interferometer’, the ESO Very Large Telescope Interferometer, allowing astronomers to see details up to 25 times finer than with the individual telescopes. The light beams are combined in the VLTI using a complex system of mirrors in underground tunnels where the light paths must be kept equal to distances less than 1/1000 mm over a hundred metres. With this kind of precision the VLTI can reconstruct images with an angular resolution of milliarcseconds, equivalent to distinguishing the two headlights of a car at the distance of the Moon.
Image taken taken in 16/10/2015 from Cerro Paranal, Atacama desert, Chile.
Yepun Telescope and Magellanic Clouds
In the background, at the left side of Yepun VLT Telescope, we can see the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds, while in center right of the image, the Zodiacal Light is coming up above the Milky Way that is lying behind the horizon.
The Very Large Telescope (VLT) is a telescope operated by the ESO – European Southern Observatory on Cerro Paranal in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. The VLT is the world’s most advanced optical instrument, consisting of four Unit Telescopes with main mirrors of 8.2m diameter, which are generally used separately but can be used together to achieve very high angular resolution. The four separate optical telescopes are known as Antu, Kueyen, Melipal and Yepun, which are all words for astronomical objects in the Mapuche language, with optical elements that can combine them into an astronomical interferometer (VLTI), which is used to resolve small objects. The interferometer is complemented by four movable Auxiliary Telescopes (ATs) of 1.8 m aperture. The 8.2m diameter Unit Telescopes can also be used individually. With one such telescope, images of celestial objects as faint as magnitude 30 can be obtained in a one-hour exposure. This corresponds to seeing objects that are four billion (four thousand million) times fainter than what can be seen with the unaided eye. The telescopes can work together, to form a giant ‘interferometer’, the ESO Very Large Telescope Interferometer, allowing astronomers to see details up to 25 times finer than with the individual telescopes. The light beams are combined in the VLTI using a complex system of mirrors in underground tunnels where the light paths must be kept equal to distances less than 1/1000 mm over a hundred metres. With this kind of precision the VLTI can reconstruct images with an angular resolution of milliarcseconds, equivalent to distinguishing the two headlights of a car at the distance of the Moon.
Image taken taken in 15/10/2015 from Cerro Paranal, Atacama desert, Chile.
