Kevin Rawlings submitted this photo of the moon and three planets – taken November 6, 2015 at 9:37 a.m. EST – from the northernmost permanently inhabited place in the world, Alert, in the territory of Nunavut in Canada. In this photo, Venus is the brightest planet, on the left. Much-fainter Mars is closely above and to the right of Venus; be sure to view larger and look closely because Venus outshines Mars by some 250 times. Jupiter is next to the moon. Kevin wrote:
This photo of the waning crescent moon in conjunction with Venus, Jupiter, and Mars was taken on my drive to work here at CFS Alert, Nunavut, Canada, the world’s northernmost inhabited place. We’re deep into the dark months of the year; the sun won’t rise again until early March, and each day the horizon gets dimmer. As the operator of the Global Atmosphere Watch observatory here in Alert, I am one of the lucky few people who gets away from the lights of the station to experience the polar darkness on a daily basis, a thrill that I doubt will ever wear off.
Nikon D750 with a Nikkor 50mm/f1.8.
6 second exposure @ 100 ISO.
Taken in RAW, processed with Rawtherapee. Slight contrast and color enhancement, no cropping or other effects used.
Thank you, Kevin, for sharing a sight that few of us will ever experience.
Alert, by the way, is at latitude 82°30’05” north. It’s 508 miles (817 km) from the North Pole. The 2011 census reported its permanent population as zero, but military and science personnel do rotate in and out of the place.
Bottom line: Moon, Venus, Mars, Jupiter on November 6, 2015 as seen from Alert in Canada – the world’s northernmost permanently inhabited place.
Deborah Byrd created the EarthSky radio series in 1991 and EarthSky.org in 1994. Today, she serves as Editor-in-Chief of this website. She has won a galaxy of awards from the broadcasting and science communities, including having an asteroid named 3505 Byrd in her honor. A science communicator and educator since 1976, Byrd believes in science as a force for good in the world and a vital tool for the 21st century. "Being an EarthSky editor is like hosting a big global party for cool nature-lovers," she says.