Star Trails at 19,000 Feet

In myth, Atlas holds up the heavens, but in this stunning view a mountain appears to serve as the southern night sky pivots around a snowy peak. Recorded during a climbing expedition at an altitude above 19,000 feet (temperature -18 degrees C), the picture places the South Celestial Pole over the Andes mountain Ojos del Salado . Topping out at over 22,000 feet, the Ojos del Salado is a stratovolcano , the highest active volcano on planet Earth . The time exposure lasted for an hour, recording the graceful arcing star trails along with the rising Milky Way (left) and setting Magellanic clouds .