Pacific Nights...

I'm fairly sure that strange, somewhat bright, object I saw gliding across the early morning sky, as I was photographing Orion and Pleiades, was one of the many satellites wandering around "up there". It appeared briefly... a few seconds, and seemed to twist it's way across the sky in a wave. Probably it wasn't one of those mysterious visits by a UFO. I'm fairly certain. Right!?

Anyway... after more than a week of cloudy nights, the Pacific night sky, off the coast of Santa Barbara, showed off last night. A blue black backdrop, over the ocean, revealed heavenly wonders in all their glory. Stars and planets visibly cruised toward the western horizon right through the break of dawn. It was... exhilarating.

Besides that strange object, occasional meteors interrupted the seeming stillness of stars and planets hanging in the dark void, accompanied by a soft melodic refrain, no doubt provided by the ebb and flow of stars vibrating their way through life... and death, in the mysterious chaotic calm of the cosmos.

The approaching Fall and Winter has long been my most favorite time for star-gazing. Much of the reason has to do with Orion taking center stage... along with the Seven Sisters ( Pleiades ). Together they call forth the brightest and most mysterious objects of the heavens. Alone, they offer mysteries and magnificence of their own. To the left, I cropped out a 100 mm shot of the Pleiades... the reputed cradle of life.

Below... Orion hangs ominous in all his mystery, magnificence, and commanding stature. It's said that the first instance of life born of Pleiades was transported to Orion, where it sought perfection... and found chaos instead. Unrelenting, the Great Hunter continues to seek that elusive perfection; the chaos remains, albeit with a purpose and beauty unmatched... save like systems in millions of other galaxies.

...and so it goes.