Fonds d’écran Astrophotography (4)

The second of three images of ESO's GigaGalaxy Zoom project is a new and wonderful 340 megapixel vista of the central parts of our galactic home, a 34 by 20-degree wide image that provides us with a view as experienced by amateur astronomers around the world. Taken by Stephane Guisard, an ESO engineer and world-renowned astrophotographer, from Cerro Paranal, home of ESO's Very Large Telescope, this image directly benefits from the quality of Paranal's sky, one of the best on the planet. The image shows the region spanning the sky from the constellation of Sagittarius (the Archer) to Scorpius (the Scorpion). The very colourful Rho Ophiuchi and Antares region features prominently to the right, as well as much darker areas, such as the Pipe and Snake Nebulae. The dusty lane of our Milky Way runs obliquely through the image, dotted with remarkable bright, reddish nebulae, such as the Lagoon and the Trifid Nebulae, as well as NGC 6357 and NGC 6334. This dark lane also hosts the very centre of our Galaxy, where a supermassive black hole is lurking.

ESO/J. Emerson/VISTA. Acknowledgment: Cambridge Astronomical Survey Unit

A nearly full, waxing-gibbous phase of the Earth's moon. Shot on November 8th, 2011 from Hanover, New Hampshire.

Nikon D700, Shot at 1600mm, f/6.3, 1/250 second, ISO 200 with a Nikon D700 at prime focus.

Réglages de la photo : 1 600 mm, 1/250 seconde, ISO 200.

This wallpaper is a composite of two 60-minute manually guided photographs using a 10-inch Meade LX200 (f/6.3). The Whirlpool Galaxy is known as M51 in the Messier catalog.