A glimpse of a clear night sky in Ireland, with her winds toned down to a soft breeze. Above, a gibbous moon shining South, closest planets circling the hemisphere, some human amalgamations of metal shining in unnaturally slow trajectories, and an unexpected comet surging North… Wait, what? Comet?!
Had to get myself on top of a mountain, far, far West, away from man made lights and bound to seek only those that have been filling the darkness and myths, for ages beyond senses.
On a starry sky, emerging over the landscape, there it was, an unusual shape, a blemish of light in the dark sky, bright in its core, dragging a flamboyant tail. A rewarding sight and reason enough for the drive and experience, memory already in the making.
I set the camera, attached optics, pushed buttons in an exploratory sequence, capturing the scarce photons into bytes, a hope of digitizing the sight.
In the hour that followed, what happened goes beyond imagination. Emerging below the comet, behind the far mountains, a surge of noctilucent clouds rampaged across the entire landscape, exalting light, colors and tones worthy of a William Turner painting. The clouds cradled the comet, as if blessing its astronomical voyage. The beauty of this night landscape now deeply impressed my mind. I wasn’t expecting this. I would be happy just for the comet. There’s always light. Sometimes, we just need the darkness to see it.
Mount Gabriel, Mizen Head, West Cork, Ireland
July, 2020
