Lazy Moons
Bozeman, Montana
2022
In late September I read an article in the news about the planet Jupiter. It was something about it being brighter in the night sky than it has been for many years–or something like that, I forget the exact issue. Anyway, that night I went out to see it and was amazed not only that it was in fact quite bright, but also that I could easily make out four moons with the moderately decent pair of binoculars that we have. So then, just for grins, I grabbed my camera with its 100-400mm telephoto lens, braced it against a porch post and took this handheld shot. I’m sure that not even bothering with a tripod puts me in the running for the world’s laziest astro-photographer and you certainly will never see my celestial photos in Sky and Telescope magazine, but the results are still oddly pleasing to this former childhood astronomy buff.
I didn’t try to photograph the event but I also was impressed with leaning up against a corner of the house with my 10 30×50 binoculars and viewing the light show. Being able to see the spheres in a relative 3D view also gave me the impression of how dark space was and how the reflected light seemed puny and far away…
If you’re interested in more space “stuff” and haven’t seen it yet, Amazon Prime’s Good Night Oppy documentary is a good watch. Having tissues on hand is optional but recommended.