Click image for larger view in the gallery. - Technical info: f/4.5 100-iso 50mm 436"-exp
As many of my fellow Alaskans lament the end of Summer and a return to the long, dark Winter — I’m ready to embrace the beautiful Alaskan night sky. Welcome back, stars!
Alaskan summers are bright, and not just during the day — during the summer I can read a book outside without any artificial light. When the Sun goes down, it barely goes down and by the time you blink it’s already rising again. This is a beautiful thing after the very long, very cold, and very dark winters we Alaskans survive each year. That said, all of that light forces stargazers like myself to find other things to be captivated by during the Summer months.
During Alaskan winters, we have beautiful night skies — millions of acres completely free of light pollution, beautiful mountains in the foreground, and regular displays of the phenomenal and spectacular aurora borealis (northern lights).
The only downside… it’s cold.
But, right now we’re entering what I refer to as the “Alaskan Stargazer Sweet-Spot”. As we enter Fall, the stars come back, the skies get dark… and it’s not yet very cold out. When I’m viewing the night skies, I’m usually so amazed with the majesty of it all to be too bothered by the cold; my hands freeze and shiver to the point that I can’t operate my camera or telescope anymore before the rational part of my brain tells me I’d better head inside. During the Sweet-Spot, my rational brain can take a break and let my creative and fascinated brain take over. I can take long-exposure photographs while enjoying the beauty of the cosmos, rather than opening my shutter and ducking inside. Late August is an amazing time of year in Alaska; it’s a shame it has to be so short.
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