By Éimear O'Connor | 2025-01-14
Lunar Occultation of the Planet Mars
On 01/13/2025 09:59 pm by Shaun Tarpley | Website | League City, TX, United States
The cloud cover was too heavy at the beginning of the occultation, so I had to wait until Mars re-emerged on the other side of the Moon. I took a video of Mars rising over the Moon's horizon, so I didn't photograph the Moon until afterward. There was extensive atmospheric distortion from clouds, so I took many images and processed the best one. It is a little hard to see at this scale, but you can just make out the polar ice cap on the left side of Mars.
Nikon Z8 with a Nikkor 500mm f5.6 and 2x teleconverter (1000mm total focal length). Connected to a tripod with geared head and cable release.
Increased contrast and sharpness in Photoshop and added lines and text.