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Surprising Science

Star Trails Over El Capitan

From base to summit, Yosemite’s El Capitan is around 3,000 feet, and hiding the north celestial pole in this photograph. But follow the star trails, and you’ll of course get a sense of where the north celestial pole is anyway. 


NASA has more:  

Their short arcs reflecting the planet’s daily rotation on its axis are traced in a digital stack of 36 sequential exposures. Linear trails of passing airplane navigation lights and a flare from car lights along the road below are also captured in the sequential stack. But the punctuated trail of light seen against the sheer El Capitan itself follows a climbing team on the night of November 8, 2013. The team is ascending toward the summit along The Nose, a historic rock climbing route.

Image credit: NASA


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