Utah's West Desert at Night

Utah's west desert areas make an ideal place to view the night sky, with little light pollution and low horizons. The opening view of this panorama includes Jupiter, the brightest "star" above the horizon, and the constellation Orion to Jupiter's right. The Milky Way is seen rising from the horizon in between these two features.

Follow the Milky Way up and over to the western horizon, and you'll find another interesting feature. The glow of light rising from the horizon to the left of the Milky Way is the Zodiacal Light. The bright line running parellel to the horizon, in between the Zodiacal Light and the Milky Way, may look like the track of a jet, but is actually an Iridium Satellite Flare.