And then this! Actual Celestial Light.

Courtesy of SpaceX Falcon.
As I set out this evening to see how the lighthouse was looking against the fading glow of sunset, I saw what looked like the most spectacular firework ever in the sky. Since it didn’t disappear after a few seconds as expected, I set up my tripod and put the camera into its Milky Way preset, and fired away right where I was by the roadside.
Doesnt’t that sound efficient? In reality I was fumbling around with buttons and focus while various people pulled up or walked up around me,speculating as to what ithe lights in the sky could be. I’d heard vaguely on the news that something or other would launch from Vandenberg, but hadn’t expected that we’d see it so hadn’t payed attention. One lady had time to research it using her phone before I got the first shot off - this is it, just as the main part started to descend, I think. The reddish orange blob on the left is some part that separated earlier.
I figured that the Falcon was brighter than the Milky Way ever is, so I used a smaller aperture. I’m sure you’ll see technically better shots of it all over the place, but I was quite pleased with this one. Sometimes there are nice surprises.
(The extra is an actual Milky Way effort from last night - quite dull in comparison. The loom of Monterey is on the left, the Santa Cruz approach buoy in the middle, and the green light of the harbor entrance is on the right. It was really too early for Milky Way shots - there is a lot of sunset glow on the right, too.)