Saturn‘s Majestic Sunset Photo Behind Mountain Captivates Internet
Reddit has been captivated by an extraordinary photograph of Saturn appearing to set behind a mountain. Shared on r/space’s subreddit this captivating picture has generated a lot of interest in the astrophotography and its perspectives.
Daniel Borja, an astrophotographer (originally posted the photograph).u/danborjaThe post, simply titled “I took a picture of Saturn as it set behind a mountain,” has received significant attention. It’s been viewed over 69,000 times since February 16th. This post, titled simply “I took this picture of Saturn when it was setting behind a Mountain,” shows a stunning view of Saturn in the distance, suspended against a starlit, dark sky. It is nestled above a silhouetted mountain range.
Borja said in a post that “this image was taken last Saturday”; it showed Saturn with two of its satellites, Titan, and Rhea. They appeared to set behind Cerro de la Mitras in Monterrey. Saturn was simultaneously focused on while the trees were about 3.5 km away. Celestron Nexstar 6, a focal reducer.63, and an ASI533MC ZWO camera were all used.
Borja also shared an example of his feat. video Scene and an uncropped version Imgur. He explained his method, which included the use of HDR imaging to reveal the fine details in the photograph.
Borja said, “My aim was to show Saturn’s Moons. This required using HDR and overexposing one telescope.” Addressing potential skepticism regarding the image’s authenticity, he emphasized, “This is representative of how it appears through the eyepiece—an experience even more breathtaking in reality.”
Although the picture has been widely praised, it also provoked lively discussion amongst astrophotography fans and experts regarding the potential authenticity and scale of the photo.
Ryan Mayiras of Candid Studios Photography and Videography specializes exclusively in astrophotography. Mayiras says that “the uniformity and level of noise throughout the picture leads me to believe it is a legitimate photograph and has not been digitally altered.” Mayiras said that there were no visible artifacts on the treeline, which would indicate any image blending.
Mayiras went on to say, “The amount of noise in this image is consistent with the level found in most legitimate photos,” which further reinforced his conviction in its authenticity. The camera’s sensor is causing the distortion when it tries to interpret the colors in low light conditions.
Coell said, “The large pixels of the camera, combined with the telescope specified, should give about 0.43 degree on a 1.5 meter telescope. This is a very narrow angle.” The background will look larger if you compress the foreground.
He emphasizes that both the distance stated and the technical specifications are in line with what was observed. “Given the information shared by Borja—the distance to the trees being approximately 3,500 meters (~2.18 miles)—an angle of view of 0.43 degrees would result in a horizontal field of view of approximately 26 degrees. Coell explained, “Comparing the dimensions of trees on the cropped version with the field we see ourselves supports authenticity.”
‘It’s Unreal’
Reddit users are astonished by the incredible picture.
Sun_rises_down wrote “Hahaha. It’s definitely like a cartoon or sticker!” Borja then replied, “It also looks weird to me. It’s almost like a cartoon or sticker.” It’s unreal.”
KaiserYami wrote: “Beautiful!” “Words cannot justify my amazement.”
Another user f***thesysten added: “I honestly gasped HARD! This is so incredible, I’m excited to watch it myself!
Borja stated that seeing Saturn in person through his scope is more than a visual representation. He said, “The entire image matches the eyepiece closely. It’s just unmatched and it can’t really be captured by photography.”
