Lady Liberty's torch seems to be ablaze with a huge glowing orb as a helicopter photobombs her moment in this stunning sunset photo by New York City astrophotographer Gowrishankhar ("Gowri") Lakshminarayanan.
From Lower Manhattan, the photographer snapped this series of sunset images on Jan. 14, 2018, 11 days after Earth's perihelion — the moment at which the Earth and sun are at their closest point all year. This phenomenon occurs about two weeks after the winter solstice in December. [Gallery: Scientists' Favorite Sun Photos by Solar Dynamics Observatory]
In another view of the setting sun, Gowri built a composite image using six frames taken 3 minutes apart to show the sun's progression across the sky. The reds, oranges and yellows of the cloudy background in the time-lapse image emphasize the stark grandeur of the Statue of Liberty.
Gowri told Space.com that he planned the shot using a tool called the Photographer's Ephemeris, which allowed him "to align the solar disc with the torch." According to the photographer, "the short sweep of the ecliptic during winter months makes it favorable to align … the setting sun with the Statue of Liberty."
The photographer used a Canon EOS 5D Mark III DSLR camera and a Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L lens to capture the images.
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