Mount Merapi, Gunung Merapi in Indonesian and
Javanese, literally means "Fire Mountain," is an active stratovolcano
located on the boundary between the province of Central Java and the Special
Region of Yogyakarta, Indonesia. It is Indonesia's most active volcano erupting
regularly since 1548. It lies around 28 kilometers (17 miles) north of
Yogyakarta which has a population of 2.4 million people and thousands of people
live on the volcano's sides with communities as high as 1,700 meters (5,577
feet) above sea level.
Mount Merapi is a favorite of photographers and is
frequently photographed. During a recent shooting, though, photographer Gunarto
Song was in for a surprise.
Mount Merapi's current eruption status demands that
no one venture within three kilometers of the volcano. So, to get the twilight
sight he desired, Song went to Batu Alien. This enormous stone was thrown from
the volcano's mouth during an eruption and now stands adjacent to a cliff with
a good view of Merapi. A burst of light fell on him as he focused on some
clouds. Fortunately, he was quick enough to fire the shutter as it happened.
This burst of light was a meteor and Song captured
the precise moment it looked to crash onto Mount Merapi. With over 30,000 likes
the pic has already gone viral. The shooting star was converted into a streak
of light by the long-exposure photograph. “I used a four-second shutter speed
which made the photographs [of the light] look lengthy. Yet the light was
round-shaped; it descended so quickly but it was a circular light,” the
photographer explained.
Several CCTV cameras in the neighborhood also
recorded the incident. The Eta Aquarid Meteor Shower and the Arietid Meteor
Shower were both active at the time of the incident, prompting the National
Institute of Aeronautics and Space (LAPAN) to assume it was a meteor. They also
claimed that the green tint of the light was caused by the meteor's high
magnesium concentration.
The spectacular photograph demonstrates that there
is nothing more beautiful than when two rare Mother Nature phenomena converge.
Mount Merapi, Indonesia's most active volcano, has erupted intermittently since the 16th century.
Photographer Gunarto Song was fortunate enough to
capture a meteor as it looked to crash into the volcano.
The lengthy exposure converted the shooting star
into a luminous streak.
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