Taurus and Pleiades

Thanks to a "lightning deal" on Amazon, I was able to afford a close-to-pro-level tripod, something I've needed for years. And no sooner did I get it out of the box and figure out the intricacies of using it than I set it up in the meadow and started to take 15- to 30-second time exposures of the night sky. The winter constellations—Gemini, the Twins; Taurus, the Bull; Canis Major and Canis Minor, the Big Dog and the Little Dog, respectively; and Orion, the Hunter (those are his canines)—are starting to rise into the eastern sky not long after the sun sets, and they'll soon dominate the heavens. This image is of Taurus, whose horns and face are depicted as the Vee just to the right of center. Above the Bull's head, and almost at the top of the photo, is a dipper-like cluster of stars called the Pleiades, or, in English, the Seven Sisters, which mark the shoulder of Taurus. These star groups were well-known to ancient observers, and they're distinct enough so that you can see them even in the over-bright city. But the view is way better under the dark November sky in the countryside I call home. The sight of these "superstars" is worth braving the chill.