The Teapot

I had a wonderful evening observing last night!  It was a magnificent night, nearly as clear as can be, and the brilliance of the stars was breathtaking.  This is what amateur observers hope for.  Mainly I went out to look at some of the fascinating objects that are in the universe - stars, galaxies, nebulae and star clusters, with one of my telescopes.  But I brought my camera and a camera tracking platform and tried making a few photographs.  This is the constellation Sagittarius, the archer, with the star clouds of the Milky Way rising into the sky - a spectacular sight with the dark lanes of dust intruding into the star clouds.  This is the most spectacular part of the entire sky, in my view.  There is an asterism which is part of the constellation, called "the Teapot" and it is easy to see if you know where to look.  I have done an unusual thing, and drawn lines on the photo connecting the stars, to show you the teapot.  The sad part of all of this, is that very few people can actually see the Milky Way, if they live in populated areas, because of light pollution.  The Milky Way is such a spectacular sight, it is a shame that so few people get to see it.  Please click on this image to see it in greater detail.