The Milky Way over Delicate Arche, Arches NP

During our Canada and USA tour we visited Moab for the second time. Moab is located in the east of the state of Utah and in the middle of the Colorado Plateau. Moab is an excellent starting point for various highlights of the American Southwest. The Canyonlands and Arches National Park can be reached within a short time. There is also the lesser-known Dead Horse Point State Park. In addition to the well-known parks, there are countless nameless desert landscapes to explore. We spent one of the days in the Arches National Park again. Since we saw the "Delicate-Arch" on our last visit, we didn't have it on the program this time. Relatively spontaneously, we decided to start the hike to Delicate Arch in the dark in order to enjoy the starry sky and the Milky Way from there. At this point I would like to advise anyone who has not yet done the hike in the light from trying it in the dark.

When we arrived at the arch, the astronomical twilight was already over and it was accordingly dark. To our delight, we were (initially) the only people on site. We know from our visit 2 years ago that during the day a line forms to take selfies under the arch. Looking at the night sky in such a dark place is always an amazing experience for a Central European. When the moon set shortly after ten, it got even darker and the Milky Way was even more visible. This is how this recording was made. Satisfied, we made our way back to the parking lot.

You will find the entire gallery from the USA 2019 here.