Star Trails Over Vienna
			
		
		
			Credit & Copyright:  
Peter Wienerroither  
(U. Wien)
		
		
			As the Earth spins on its axis, the sky seems to rotate around us. 
This motion, called 
diurnal motion, 
produces the beautiful concentric trails traced 
by stars during time exposures.  
In the middle of the picture is the North Celestial Pole (NCP), easily identified as the point in the sky at the center of all the star trail arcs. 
The star Polaris, 
commonly known as the 
North Star, made the very short bright circle near the NCP.  
Full circle star trails are pictured over Vienna, 
Austria.   
This image, a relatively short exposure followed by a
digital trick, could not have been 
taken during a single night because 24-hours are needed for 
one full rotation, and the 
Sun is sure 
to dominate the frame at some time.