Astrophotography Image Arcade

AURORA & GLORY This image has been shot from the left side window of the plane flying from San Francisco to Bengaluru, February 2021. The flight path was a northerly one, with the maximum latitude about 80° north. At the time of this image the plane was flying over northern parts of Canada. The direction of travel was almost northwards, so this view is almost westward. What can you see in the image? The most prominent is the bright green Aurora spread in this wide angle image. Then your eye probably will wander towards Krittika, a.k.a. Seven Sisters and the Oculus Tauri - a.k.a. Aldebaran and the cluster of Hyades, the famous V shape of the Taurus the bull. You can see the large engine of the Boeing 777-200 aircraft, as well as the flare from the port side wing lights is flashing in the image. On the ground, which is completely shrouded in clouds, but you can see the light from a small airport in the sparsely populated northern part of Canada. At the time of this photo the Moon was in the sky, behind on the other side of the plane. The horizon is bluish because of the moonlight But what you are probably thinking as a mark on the plane window, that bright circle, in the lower right part of the image, is in fact a 'Glory'. A 'Glory' is a circular rainbow caused by sunlight or moonlight and the ice crystals in the clouds. A Glory is always opposite the Moon/Sun. Look carefully and you can see a black shadow leading to the centre of the Glory, that's the shadow of the contrail of the plane.