Posted on 06/26/2026 12:22:41 PM PDT by MtnClimber
Explanation: In a cosmic vista you can never see, the Milky Way arcs through the night above Seoul, South Korea. Remarkably, this urban night skyscape reveals our galaxy's faintly luminous central region and dark obscuring dust clouds in spite of the brilliant city lights. To overcome the extreme light pollution of the metropolitan area and record faint cosmic details, an infrared filter was used to capture the night scene in a single exposure. While the filter transmits predominately infrared light, it still passes some visible light to give the scene a natural appearance. The view is from Seoul's Ttukseom Hangang Park, with the Han River and a well lit railway bridge across the foreground. The 123 story Lotte World Tower looms in the distance, the tallest building in South Korea.
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Wow.
Who would have thought it was possible to see the Milky Way from a dense city scape? What a clever use of Infrared!
On most nights at my desert property (far from most light pollution), the Milkly Way stands out.
Desert nights tend to be clear. Another great place to see it is away from cities, in winter, after a cold wave has passed through, in the clear still air behind it. It is spectacular at 30 degrees below zero... but not as comfortable as 80 degrees on a desert night in Arizona.
Cameras and filters will show a lot that you will never see with your eyes. Even fifty miles from a major city the Milky Way can be tough to see.
You have to get west of I-35 to find dark skies anymore. And the blue areas of the map east of I35 are shrinking so fast I wouldn’t bother buying real estate there if you are after dark skies.
Even fifty miles from a major city the Milky Way can be tough to see.
You have to get west of I-35 to find dark skies anymore.
Sadly correct.
Most people have not even heard of light pollution. It is nice to have some technology to fall back on.
In the East, there may be a few spots near the Canadian border or in the Upper Penninsula of Michigan, during the dead of winter...
I'm near the Great Lakes: If I saw this, it would look like nothing more than clouds.
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