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Photographer Dustin Prickett sent SPACE.com this stunning image of bride Karly Kryza and the groom Lucas Farmer embracing during their wedding reception at Cross Creek Ranch in Dover, Fla., on Sept. 8. The moon and Venus also shared a close encounter that evening, as seen toward the top left of the image, in what astronomers call a "conjunction," when two celestial objects appear near each other when viewed from Earth. Credit: Dustin Prickett | Sunglow Photography |
While bride Karly Kryza and groom Lucas Farmer were sharing an embrace during their wedding reception, little did they know another close encounter, this one of a celestial kind, was taking place above them in the night sky.
Photographer Dustin Prickett captured this beautiful image of the moon and Venus sharing a moment above the new couple on Sept. 8 at Cross Creek Ranch in Dover, Fla. The celestial wedding crashers wowed stargazers around the world that night in what astronomers call a "conjunction," which is when two celestial objects appear near each other when viewed from Earth.
"After taking a few images I noticed the moon rising and backed up for one last frame before returning to the wedding reception. It wasn't until after [the wedding] a friend of the couple informed us that it was Venus right next to the moon," Prickett wrote SPACE.com in an email. He used a Nikon D3s and Nikon 35mm G lens; hand held at f/1.4, 1/125 seconds, and iso 3200. [More Amazing Photos: Venus with the Moon on Sept. 8]
The night sky meet-up occurred roughly 45 minutes after sunset in what was their closest encounter of the northern summer, fall or winter.
"I am a big fan of that twilight time especially when the location has market lights strung. So we stepped out of the reception shortly after sunset into the open field," Prickett said.
To see more amazing night sky photos submitted by SPACE.com readers, visit our astrophotography archive.
Editor's note: If you have an amazing night sky photo you'd like to share for a possible story or image gallery, please contact managing editor Tariq Malik at spacephotos@space.com.
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