Interesting that the NASA blurb doesn’t mention that the setting of the photo is Iran.
I’ll bet NASA has all sorts of interesting photos of Iran. 
djm
I bet you’d get just as good photos in North Korea…
Thanks for this photo Denny: it inspired me to stop staring at this screen and go outside and look at the real thing.
I can report that the Milky Way was magnificent over Oz last night.
JW
show off
it’ll clear off here in late July for a couple of weeks.
I hope…
There’s too much light pollution for hundreds of miles in any direction for me to ever see the Milky Way. Now that I think of it, it’s been a good ten years since I was far enough away from civilization to see a dark sky.
djm
I’m just a-sittin’ here, starin’ out the window, ain’t sayin’ nothin’! 
Indeed .
We’re inland this weekend where the drought hasn’t quite broken yet so there’s no cloud cover.
The first time we came here, about 15 years ago, I hadn’t been out of the city for some time.
I felt genuinely relieved to see that the stars were still as numerous as I remembered them - an odd notion I know but in the city you can see so few stars that on some level I must have thought they’d gone the way of the trees - removed to make room for more people.
The autumn night sky here on the dark of the moon is almost as good as the photo of Iran.
I may attempt to see the Eta Aquarids early on Tuesday morning. I’d have to be up at 4am and by then we’ll be back in town but hey, Sydney Observatory is hosting a gathering to see them in the CBD so it’s possible I’ll see something.
I have to say I love a good meteor shower.
JW
Mr T stirred at 4:45 am so I took the opportunity to see if I could see the meteors. Resplendent in my crookedly buttoned cape, floppy jumper and PJs I swung open the front gate to find three men dressed in reflective jumpsuits staring at me curiously from across the road.
I hesitated for a moment but decided that it was unlikely that they were lying in wait to attack anyone - they looked more like the Ghostbusters crew than anything else.
“Seen any meteors?” I enquired, trying to look composed.
“Meteors” they said, clearly thinking I was an escaped dementia patient.
“Yes, in the east” “No, we haven’t seen any.”
I proceeded purposefully into the park but was defeated in my efforts by starkly vigilant security lights. Someone was even playing a five rayed spotlight down by the river.
I’m sure I saw some flickers in the east, 'though, just enough to give the impression of a planet passing through the tail of a distant comet - sufficient soul stirring to make the jaunt worthwhile.
The mineworkers’ lift arrived to take them to work and I returned to a soundly sleeping Mr T.
JW