October Star Trails

Star trails were created in this image by aiming the camera's lens toward Polaris, the North Star, and leaving the shutter open for 12.5 minutes. Originally intended as a 20-minute exposure, an unexpected meteor streaked downward nearly across Polaris, causing me to disengage the shot. The faint diagonal streak can be viewed by zooming in on Polaris at the center of this picture. The night was crisp, clear and dry, producing good visibility. The dark area at upper right is the underside of our house's roof gutter. The two very bright streaks at lower left are part of Ursa Major. Captured from the Bowman Woods neighborhood of Cedar Rapids, Iowa and started at 9:20 PM, October 5, 2010, this image was shot at f/8 with an 18mm focal length and an ISO rating of 640.