Finnish astrophotographer spends 1000 hours 12 years on the mosaic of the Milky Way

Finnish astrophotographer spends 1000 hours 12 years on the mosaic of the Milky Way

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Written by By Eoin McSweeney, CNN

Capturing panoramas of the Milky Way, the galaxy in which we live, can seem like a daunting task, as it is about 100,000 light-years, according to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

But Finnish astrophotographer JP Metsavainio put together 234 frames for almost 12 years to create a 125-degree sky mosaic. The panorama, which shows 20 million stars, captures the space between the Taurus and Cygnus constellation and was completed on 16 March.

“Astronomical photography is one of the most difficult forms of nature photography,” Metsavainio, a professional artist, told CNN on Friday. “My mosaic image is generally very deep, which means it displays extremely dim targets and formations in gas clouds from our galaxy, the Milky Way.”

Each image in the mosaic is an independent work of art and available on Metsavainio’s blog. He claims that an image like this has never existed before, and that is one of the reasons why he decided to devote thousands of hours to the project.
Clear, dark air away from the light pollution of cities is essential for astrophotography, the photography of astronomical objects, an activity that takes place worldwide. Patience is also important because it can take hours or even days to take just one photo over a long exposure.

Metsavainio used a series of modified camera lenses and telescopes in his observatory in northern Finland, near the Arctic Circle. He first uses image processing software to adjust levels and color before stitching the individual panels on Adobe PhotoShop together and using stars as indicators to match the correct frames.

JP Metsavainio

JP Metsavainio, the Finnish astrophotographer, who created the beautiful mosaic of the Milky Way. Credit: Studio Timo Heikkala Oy

The astrophotographer said his favorite images are of supernova remnants, a phenomenon that arises after a star explodes. Several of them are visible in its panorama and the Cygnus shell, a particularly dull supernova remnant that can be seen as a light blue ring near the North American nebula, took the astrophotographer 100 hours to create.

Since the photo was published, his blog has had 750,000 visitors, compared to an average of about 1,000 per day.

“The reason I keep doing my slow work is basically an endless curiosity. I like to see and show how wonderful our world really is,” he told CNN. “It’s lonely and slow work, but every time I see the results, I’m as excited as the first time.”

Another photo of the Sharpless 132 Nebula that forms a small part of JP Metsavainio's Milky Way mosaic

Another photo of the Sharpless 132 Nebula that forms a small part of JP Metsavainio’s Milky Way mosaic Credit: Thanks to JP Metsavainio

In addition to Queen guitarist and astrophysicist Brian May, Metsavainio participated in a live virtual broadcast hosted by the Science Museum of London in September. At the time, he was publishing a 3-D book on cosmic clouds with musician and Astronomy Magazine editor David J Eicher.

Metsavainio is a devoted lover of the night sky and plans to continue his work, but with a different lens.

“I’ve been shooting the night sky with a relatively short focal length for the last few years,” Metsavainio said. “In the future, I will return to an instrument with a longer focal point.”

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