![Tracing Star Twinkling thumbnail](https://opn-web-afd-d3bfbkd5bcc5asbs.z02.azurefd.net/opn/media/images/imageoftheweek/12/12-07-16.jpg?t=638435902866914416)
Tracing Star Twinkling
Scintillation and telescope jitter are recast into a beautiful image. A telephoto lens was wiggled slightly to capture a five-second exposure of the star Sirius on 4 January 2012. As the star‘s twinkling image skated around the focal plane, it traced graceful, colorful arcs. Twinkling is the rapid fluctuation in brightness and color of a star due to changes in the density of air pockets. — David K. Lynch, Thule Scientific