A photographer from California created a time-lapse video of Earth as it rotated against the night sky. Aside from the Earth's rotation, the stunning clip also features the bright stars of the Milky Way galaxy.
The entire video was recorded by photographer Eric Brummel and features the Font's Point in the Anza-Borrego Desert in California. The clip, which is less than 30 seconds long, highlights the smooth rotation of Earth.
Capturing The Earth's Rotation
Brummel explained that he was able to capture Earth's natural movement through a piece of special equipment called an equatorial mount. This instrument is like a motorized tripod that can be programmed to monitor the exact movement of Earth as well as the cosmic objects in the sky. Using this data, the mount can move the camera attached to it to rotate in the opposite direction but at the same time as Earth's movement.
If Brummel did not use an equatorial mount, his video would be just like an ordinary time-lapse that shows the sky moving and changing as time passes by. Through his special equipment, the photographer was able to clearly show the Earth's rotation while the sky featuring the Milky Way galaxy remains perfectly still.
A Different Perspective On The Planet's Movement
According to Drummel, the point of his video is to accurately highlight the Earth's rotation. Unlike in other time-lapse videos with a similar theme, Drummel's work doesn't show changes in the sky. Instead, it focuses on Earth's natural rotation. The photographer noted that although this is exactly how Earth's rotation occurs, this natural event is rarely featured on film.
"Here's a clip from a short time-lapse film I have in the works," Brummel wrote in the video's description on YouTube. "The purpose of the film will be to highlight that it's the Earth that rotates, not the sky. We all *know* that's the case, but we don't really perceive it that way."
