The composite image above (duration: 84 sec.) shows a double Iridium flare near center and the pass of unidentified satellites to the right/below and to the left of the Iridium satellites. Aircraft trails are also visible near the horizon and edges of the frame. This photo set was taken on the "telescope field" at the Saturday night star party at the RTMC Astronomy Expo near Big Bear, California. The refractor at left was an 8.5" home-made refractor. Jupiter and Mars were popular targets for this evening.
Minutes after the above Iridium flares, the International Space Station (ISS) was visible as seen in this composite image (duration: 6-1/2 minutes). The ISS is the white trail between two airplane trails which have a red tint and flashes of light from the aircraft beacons (see large image). During this long sequence, the stars rotated enough to clearly show Polaris marking the north celestial pole.
Photo info
- Date/Time: 28 May 2016
- Location: Camp Oakes, Big Bear, CA
- Camera: Nikon D600
- Exposure: 10 sec. @ ISO 1600, 12 sec. intervals
- Scope: Sigma 15mm f/2.8
- Mount: none
- Image Processing: Lightroom and Photoshop