We love a good astronomy photo, thanks to awards like Astronomy Photographer of the Year, the quality of astrophotography continues to rise with better compositions and views. However, tomorrow will be remembered as the day when the level of astrophotography literally went up by the kilometer.
The remainder of this article is behind a paywall. Please sign in or subscribe to access all content.
The collaboration between astrophotographer Andrew McCarthy and skydiver Gabriel C. Brown created an image the likes of which we have never seen before. called fall of icarusIt shows Brown striking an incredible image of the Sun in hydrogen alpha light. This is a specific wavelength that detects the turbulent hydrogen layer just above the Sun’s bright surface. The result speaks for itself.
The brown silhouette is neatly demarcated on the sun’s bubbling surface. Its downward trajectory is perfectly plotted between sunspots, active regions on the Sun’s surface that are slightly cooler than their surroundings. It’s not just a pretty picture; It is truly a masterpiece.
“Gabe and I met up skydiving a few months ago, and after that we had breakfast and were talking about how we could incorporate skydiving into astrophotography. The idea slowly evolved from there, taking a paramotor to high altitude and jumping off when I got the shot,” McCarthy told IFLScience.
Zoomed out version of The Fall of Icarus.
Image courtesy of Andrew McCarthy
To put it this way, McCarthy almost makes it look easy. It was not. The composition was planned; McCarthy, Brown and the paramotor pilot were constantly talking to make sure everything aligned perfectly for the shot McCarthy had in mind.
“It was quite difficult! I set up multiple cameras and had a 3-way call with the pilot and Gabe. The pilot saw his shadow as he boarded the plane, and when he saw she was about to hit where I was standing, he deactivated his power and slid through the sun while I gave him orders about how to steer after seeing his shadow,” McCarthy explained. “When I used the command to jump, it took six tries before I finally connected the jumper with Sunspot.”
ⓘ IFLScience is not responsible for the content shared from external sites.
Brown described in an Instagram post how a number of glitches surfaced during the first five attempts. We can honestly say we’re glad they persevered. The result is truly a phenomenal specimen.
You can purchase limited editions of his astrophotography prints on McCarthy’s website.