Billions and Billions of Stars and a Perseid Too!

This image is featured on Flickr's blog ( http://blog.flickr.net/en/2009/08/13/perseid-showers/ ) .

Another take/frame from my night last summer at Steens Mountain, Oregon (one of the darkest night skies found in the lower 48 states). Not a bad place to be for shooting stars!

Notes: I slightly differently processed this one, focusing on keeping the sky darker than I normally do (thoughts are appreciated). Thus it might lose something in the small view, so please do view large. It was taken just after peak of the Perseid Meteor Shower so I was pretty sure it was a shooting star, but I checked due to the shape of the streak to see if it was an Iridium Flare. The online calculator at Heavens-Above ( http://www.heavens-above.com/ ) Calculator does not indicate any predicted flares for the time period this was taken, thus I am going to assume this is indeed a leftover Perseid Meteor. I believe there is also at least one additional faint Perseids that you can only see in the large view as well.

Edit: in response to those who are saying it's more likely an unrelated meteor not from the Perseid Meteor Shower, you could very well be right. I continue to hedge my bets on this one. Although, as I mentioned earlier, I discount the satellite flare theory since no online calculators predicted one for this location and time (I would love if it were, they are harder to get, heh). So if you came here from the flickr blog and are now thinking, well geeze this isn't even at the peak of Perseids and it might not even be one, I offer this shot of mine from the 2009 Perseid Shower ( http://www.flickr.com/photos/fortphoto/3814173569/ ) that is definitely one. ;-)))

SpaceAstronomyStarStarsShootingMeteorPerseidOregonORSteensSEORNightAstrophotographyLight PollutionAndromedaNikonD300astroRA30.9533489332astroDec38.9996519087astropixelScale224.32astroorientation133.30astrofieldsize63.81 x 42.37 degreesastronameThe star Mirfak αPerastronameThe star Alpheratz αAndastronameThe star Mirach βAndastronameThe star Hamal αAriastronameThe star Algol βPerastronameThe star Almach γ1AndastronameThe star Ruchbah δCasastronameThe star Sheratan βAriastronameThe star Atik ζPerastronameThe star εPerastronameNGC 224astronameGreat Nebula in AndromedaastronameM 31astronameNGC 598astronameM 33astronameTriangulum galaxyastronameIC 1805astronameIC 1848astronameNGC 1499astronameCalifornia nebulaAstrometrydotnetversion11264Astrometrydotnetidalpha20090558170087Astrometrydotnetstatussolved2009