Do you know anything strange, but beautiful at the same time? Something that can hold many questions and thoughts, but what only matters to you is how awesome it looks? Well, astrophotography is exactly that. It can be as simple as a picture of the Earth or the moon, or it can be as complex as everything else in our galaxy. Just a simple picture can inspire or change your thought on space and what it could mean to us and generations of the future.
Above is an amazing photo by Paean Ng. He is a self-taught nightscape astrophotographer. This photo was taken in Western Australia. Here in this photo, you can see the true beauty of our world and everything that surrounds it. Just look at how many stars you can see! Those stars are probably lightyears away from us. You can also see that colorful rainbow-like formation of light. It may look like a bunch of cool lights and shapes to us, but closer up, that is our Milky Way galaxy.
What is so special and great about astrophotography is that it photographs the stars, the planets, and other mysteries of the universe. Normally, whenever you look outside at night, all you can see are some stars and most of the time, the moon. Only on select dates throughout the year can you see other planets. But in this specific Australian location, you can see what is trulyoutside. Just imagine, you are here, laying down on this sandy location, looking up and seeing everything. That is what is so great about astrophotography. It takes a step outside of our regular, ‘normal’ black or blue looking sky, and brings us something new that some people have probably never seen before.
What should you feel when looking at these photos? Scared? Happy? Confused? These are all great and perfectly fine emotions to feel, but, if anything, you should feel determined. Hopefully, one day in our lifetimes, astronauts and other space explorers can go further up close and see what else is outside of our planet and other parts of our galaxy other than some photos from a high-tech telescope. Being determined to one day step on a planet or moon that is miles upon miles away from Earth. Although this is only a dream now, as long as technology is moving with money, anything is possible.
“It’s just a bunch of stars and planets that most of us will never have the money or the life-span to see anything monumental happen, why does this even matter?”, someone might say. Well, it does not really matter at all, depending on your interests and mindset. The people of this world can just throw their ideas and thoughts about exploring space and we can just move on. But, exploration can lead to great things for our planet and possibly others. We can help our planet and its countries as well as start a new life on others, partnering with each other to create something new and awesome. Sounds like American history a little bit, but, with the right people, this could change the game of life as we know it. Even though we might not ever see something like this happen, we can set the stage and build the foundation for other generations to continue to build upon.
Sometimes, a simple image can create sparks in your brain that make you want to research, explore, learn, etc. Astrophotography can be that spark in your brain that inspires people, furthering the exploration of space, creating new stories, life, history, and much more. Who would have known that a beautifully strange picture can inspire somebody to do historical and life-changing achievements?
Max Sedano, Staff Writer
Rock Academy Warrior since 2017
Likes music, movies, video games, food, sleep, and friends.
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