Astrophotographer Ajay Talwar camped out in a tent in the Thar Desert in northwestern India to get this stunning photo of a starry winter night.
In the image, the star Sirius is visible as a bright spot near the horizon. The constellations Orion, Taurus, and Gemini can also be seen dotting the sky. The Great Rann of Kutch ("rann" means desert in Hindi) is a seasonal salt marsh within the Thar Desert in the Indian state of Gujarat. The photographer's campsite glows over the white salt.
Talwar took the image on Jan. 27, 2011.
Editor's note: If you have an amazing night sky photo you'd like to share for a possible story or image gallery on SPACE.com, please contact managing editor Tariq Malik at tmalik@space.com.
Follow SPACE.com for the latest in space science and exploration news on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.
Get the Space.com Newsletter
Breaking space news, the latest updates on rocket launches, skywatching events and more!
Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: community@space.com.
Nina Sen is a freelance writer and producer who covered night sky photography and astronomy for Space.com. She began writing and producing content for Space.com in 2011 with a focus on story and image production, as well as amazing space photos captured by NASA telescopes and other missions. Her work also includes coverage of amazing images by astrophotographers that showcase the night sky's beauty.