"For my part, I know nothing with any certainty, but the sight of the stars makes me dream." Vincent van Gogh

Glancing towards the heavens at night, the stars appear fixed in place. When you look longer, it’s clear that the Moon and the stars are moving.

But what caused the movement? Are the Moon and stars moving, or are we moving?

It’s us. The Moon and the stars don’t move. The Earth constantly rotates and zips us eastward. And as we zip along, fixed celestial objects pass overhead.

While the Sun, Moon, and stars travel from East to West, the direction we see them moving depends entirely on the direction we are facing:

• Facing North: Stars rotate counterclockwise (right to left)

• Facing South: Stars rotate clockwise (left to right)

• Facing East: Stars rise in front and set behind

• Facing West: Stars rise behind and set in front

Depending on your latitude, stars follow three types of paths. Circumpolar stars (near the poles) are always above the horizon. They make small circles and may never set. Polaris (the North Star) is the pivot around which the entire northern sky revolves.

Rising and setting stars rise above the eastern horizon and later set below the western horizon. Never-rising stars are always below the horizon.

The Shot

The camera has an advantage over our eyes: photographers can take exposures that are hours long. The eye takes a 1/25th of a second exposure. Capturing the path the stars take through the night sky is one of those advantages.

The world doesn’t need another star trails photo. But they are hard to resist.

While in Utah recently, I was set up for a shot to the south featuring the Milky Way. But since I lugged my spare camera and tripod along on this trip, I thought I’d put them to use and capture a star trails image.

My foreground choice was limited. This location had two trees and a sandstone ridge whose peak lined up with Polaris above it.

The picture is the equivalent of a 2.5-hour exposure. There’s a lot of blue in the sky because of the moonlight illuminating the scene.

It’s not a wall hanger, but it is a pleasant reminder of a gorgeous evening enjoying the truly dark skies of the desert Southwest.

Thanks for looking,

Chuck Derus Zenfolio | Chuck Derus