The 101 Best Night Sky Photos of 2015 by Stargazers

Light Pillars from Argentina by Montufar

These unusual light pillars appear over Provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina. Astrophotographer Sergio Emilio Montúfar Codoñer took this image on the night of July 20, 2015.

Halo

Astrophotographer Roberto Porto sent in a photo of the Blue Moon showing a 22-degree halo, taken in Castilla (Castile), Spain, on July 31, 2015. The term "Blue Moon" refers to a 2nd full moon in a month. The 22-degree halo around the moon results from ice crystals in the atmosphere, the hexagonal structure of which refract the moonlight to the observer.

'Lighting Libertas'

Astrophotographer Jim Abels caught the Blue Moon of July 31, 2015, and the Statue of Liberty from Liberty State Park in New Jersey. He writes in an email message to Space.com: "I planned the location out by using Photographer's Ephemeris app on my phone to determine the location of the moon rising. I waited until the moon lined up with the torch to capture this shot."

Blue Moon Over Table Rock Mountain, SC

The Blue Moon full moon of July 2015 shines over Table Rock Mountain in South Carolina in this amazing view by photographer Shreenivasan Manievannan on July 31, 2015.

Blue Moon and the Tower of America

The Blue Moon full moon of 2015 rises behind the Tower of America in San Antonio, Texas in this view from skywatcher by Maj Shenandoah Sanchez on July 31, 2015.

Goodbye, Night Sky

Astrophotographer Béla Papp sent in photos of himself with his spouse under the night sky in Hungary during July 2015. He writes about the photos in an email message to Space.com: “They were taken during this summer near my town. This is a flat land and the light pollution is quite [powerful] so one needs to go out many times to get ‘the’ shot…. The last two pictures ... had been taken in July about one week [before] I went for a deployment. Me and my loved one went out together which is a big deal because usually I go out alone. So we took some pictures together. As I am now stationed next to a capital I do not have a chance to see the starry ‘face’ of the night sky for months. So these pics were my goodbye shots both to my spouse and the night sky for a while.”

'Nauset Galactic'

Astrophotographer Tim Little sent in a photo of the Milky Way over Nauset Lighthouse in Eastham, Massachusetts. Image submitted August 4, 2015.

Perseid Meteor, Airplane and Satellite Over Wisconsin

Astrophotographer Matthew Moses sent in a photo of a Perseid meteor, a satellite, and an airplane streaking through the night sky over the Davidson willmill east of Superior, Wisconsin, taken on Aug. 12, 2015.

57 Perseid Meteors in 2015

Scott MacNeill of the Frosty Drew Observatory compiled three nights of Perseid meteor activity, August 13-15, 2015, in one image containing 57 meteors. The observatory is located in Charlestown, Rhode Island.

We’re Gonna Fly to the Moon

Astrophotographer Guilherme Coelho sent in a photo taken in Santo Andre, Brazil, of a 737-800 airplane on the way to Rio transiting the moon on August 30, 2015.