I captured the Moon during a missile and drone attack on Kyiv. A sky where celestial beauty collided with the harsh realities of war.

by _ibatullin_ildar_

17 comments

  1. Despite the fact that almost every night in Kyiv being marked by drone/missile attacks and air defense activity, I continue to photograph the night sky.

    This single image is the result of stacking and editing about 1,000 frames (40GB of raw data)! It took me several days of processing to get the details and colors right.

    Normally we see the Moon as gray. Here I intentionally increased the saturation of the Moon to reveal the mineral composition of its surface. In lunar seas, reddish-brown hues indicate iron oxide and blue hues indicate titanium oxide. Purple areas may represent areas of mixed composition. Relatively fresh highlands or craters are white or light blue.
    In addition, I was able to show the unilluminated side of the Moon with the HDR technique of stitching together several frames at slower shutter speeds.

    Equipment: I used an old Canon 550Da amateur camera with a Baader astronomical UV/IR cut filter, a 2x Barlow lens, a GSO 150/750 reflector telescope, and an Arsenal EQ5 mount. I also used a Canon 6D camera to capture the deep color of the mineral deposits on the lunar surface.

    You can download the full-resolution image for your wallpaper from my [Flickr](https://www.flickr.com/photos/201107309@N04).
    If you liked the image and want to see more, follow me on my [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/_ibatullin_ildar_/).

  2. This post is such an odd one out vs the normal fare.

    I love it.

  4. Holy shit that’s a beautiful shot. I hope you stay safe and well!

  6. Ukrainian flag on my house, this picture on my desktop. Thank you!

  9. Does the city still go dark at night for safety / target reduction? 

    Beautiful captures and presentation, here! All the work you put into processing them together was worth it. 😍

    Please stay safe!  

    This world needs you in it! 🫶🇺🇦

  10. And those are not mortar craters either. This moon orbited Earth before ruzzki and will do so long after.

  12. russia is a giant skidmark on the underpants of civilisation

  14. Defiance through creative means is the fucking best. This is beautiful. Thanks.

  17. Reminds me of this quote from Lord of the Rings:

    >There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.

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