Orion's Belt and Sword over Teide's Peak
Image Credit & Copyright:
Cesar & Carlos Tejedor
The southern part of Orion, the famous constellation and mythical hunter, appears quite picturesque posing here over a famous volcano.
Located in the
Canary Islands off the northwest coast of Africa,
the snow-peaked
Teide is one of the largest volcanoes on Earth.
Lights from a group planning to
summit Teide before dawn are visible below the
volcano's peak.
In this composite of exposures taken from the same location one night last month, the
three iconic
belt stars of
Orion are seen just above the peak, while the famous
Orion Nebula and the rest of
Orion's sword
are visible beyond the volcano's left slope.
Also visible in the long duration sky image are the
Horsehead Nebula,
seen as a dark indentation on the red
emission nebula
to the belt's left, and the Flame Nebula,
evident just above and to the right of the Horsehead.