Sky's Up January-February 2018 | Page 30

— Photography by Terry Mann — — Photography by Terry Mann — Mittens at Monument Valley — “I could spend weeks at Monument Valley. Everywhere you look something catches your eye. The Sun was setting while I was setting up my camera, you can still see the orange sky. The moon was rising through the clouds. The fuzzy white orb still caught my eye. Taurus sparkled brightly above the mittens. I know it’s all nature but everything seems mystical at night in Monument Valley.” Dawn of the NEW FirstLight Series Above, Aurora and Big Dipper from Minnesota Boundary Waters — “I have been back to this area many times since my first trip here, when I imaged Superior Rock. Every time I go a little deeper into the woods. There are so many lakes and so much wildlife here. I understand what draws people from all over to this area. I took this image at the end of October 2017. That night, there were gale warnings on Lake Superior and most places were cloud covered. I was there for a week and on this night, I had 3 1/2 hours of partially clear skies. On this night, I ended up on a gravel road by this lake, deep into the woods. I had to use a flashlight to walk to the edge of the water. There I waited for my eyes to adapt to the darkness. The forest was so thick but you could see some of the sky through the tress. After about a half hour, I took my first shot. I couldn’t see it but the aurora showed up in the image. Within a few minutes, I noticed the aurora was low on the horizon. Soon, large pillars were brightening in the Big Dipper. I imaged for about 2 1/2 hours. Then the wind blew the clouds in and that was the end of the imaging. I looked up at the swaying trees and hoped I could get through this gravel road without a tree falling.....The gales of November came early.” Right, Fisheye Aurora at North Pole, Alaska — “I stood on the frozen Chena River to take this shot. Standing on a frozen river or lake is not what I like to do. There is something about that cracking sound that makes me nervous. The aurora was going horizon to horizon and I couldn’t resist. Standing on the frozen river was the clearest view I could have. Slowly, I walked out until I could see most of the sky. I love Alaska but I like solid ground best.” 30 ™ Offering a galaxy of options for astronomers of all levels. 150mm Newtonian Reflector w/ EXOS II GoTo Mount Package 102mm Achromatic Refractor w/ EQ3 Mount Package 120mm Maksutov-Cassegrain w/ EXOS II GoTo Mount Package All Packages Include • One 25 mm Plössl Eyepiece * • Red Dot Viewfinder • Downloadable Software • Smartphone Adapter *AR70 & AR90 include Kellner 9mm and 20mm eyepieces The FirstLight ™ Series offers telescope and mount packages for achromatic refractors ranging in aperture from 70mm to 152mm, Maksutov-Cassegrains from 100mm to 152mm, and Newtonian reflectors from 114mm to an impressive 203mm. Visit our website for complete packages details. Sky ’ s Up What will you discover? © 2016 Explore Scientific® All rights reserved. Purchase information and authorized dealer locater available at our website. explorescientificusa.com