Stargazer Captures 'Killer' Photo of Milky Way Galaxy

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Milky Way Over Killer Lake Hungary
Astrophotographer Tamas Ladanyi of The World at Night took this image of the Milky Way over Killer Lake in the Bakony Mountains of Hungary on Aug. 15, 2012. (Image credit: Tamas Ladanyi / www.astrophoto.hu/ The World at Night)

The Milky Way glows in this gorgeous photo taken over Killer Lake in the Bakony Mountains of Hungary.

This recently released image was taken by veteran astrophotographer Tamas Ladanyi of The World at Night on Aug. 15, 2012.

The Milky Way galaxy, our cosmic home, stretches 100 light-years across and could contain nearly 400 billion stars. We live on the Orion Arm, a spiral-shaped region of gas and dust located outside the Galactic Center.

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From Earth, the Milky Way is visible as a band of light made up of stars. This is because we are viewing a disk-shaped galaxy from within. [Our Milky Way Galaxy: A Traveler's Guide (Infographic)]

Editor's note: If you have an amazing skywatching photo you'd like to share for a possible story or image gallery, please contact managing editor Tariq Malik at spacephotos@space.com.

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Nina Sen
Contributing Writer and Producer

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.