HISTORIES OF THINGS TO COME: Amazing Photos

The Milky Way Over Hawaii © Cameron Brooks. Image Source: Facebook.

Here are some great photos I have found around the Web. I won't reproduce all of them here since they are not my work, but do not miss Hollyhock Detail at The Poor Mouth and Queen Anne's Lace at Trans-D Digital Art (wow!). Where possible, I have attributed authorship, copyright and source for photos copied here.

This NASA photo made me wonder if the Star of Bethlehem, if its appearance was a historical fact, may have been auroras appearing far south due to a solar storm. Image (September 2012) © Fredrick Broms (Northern Lights Photography) via NASA.

Image Source: Necropolis.

Image Source: Graham Tebby via Telegraph.

Perseid Meteor in Macedonia, August 2012. Image Source: REUTERS/Ognen Teofilovski via Telegraph.

Photo © René Burri/Magnum Photos. CHINA. Beijing. 1964. Former Summer Palace. Dead lotus flowers on the Kunming Lake. Image Source: Facebook. (Thanks to -T.)

Image Source and Photo © Michael Lujan. (Thanks to -T.)

National Geographic Photography Contest 2011: "Grand Prize Winner and Nature Winner - SPLASHING: This photo was taken when I was taking photos of other insects, as I normally did during macro photo hunting. I wasn’t actually aware of this dragonfly since I was occupied with other objects. When I was about to take a picture of it, it suddenly rained, but the lighting was just superb. I decided to take the shot regardless of the rain. The result caused me to be overjoyed, and I hope it pleases viewers. Batam, Riau Islands, Indonesia (Photo and caption by Shikhei Goh)." Image Source: Boston.com.

National Geographic Photography Contest 2011: "Places Honorable Mention - WATERWAY TO ORBIT: Space shuttle Endeavour, launches into orbit toward the east, as the stars and waning crescent moon trail toward the west, leaving a beautiful reflection on the Intracoastal Waterway in Ponte Vedra, Florida. This 132-second time exposure of the final night launch of a space shuttle, from launch through SRB separation, was taken 115 miles north of Launch Pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center. Ponte Vedra, Florida. (Photo and caption by James Vernacotola)." Image Source: Boston.com.

National Geographic Photography Contest 2011: "Places Honorable Mention - CYBER MONSOON: A torrential monsoon rain in Bhaktapur. Bhaktapur, Nepal. (Photo and caption by Anuar Patjane)." Image Source: Boston.com.

Nyiragongo Crater: "The view from the volcano’s rim, 11,380 feet above the ground. At 1,300 feet deep, the lava lake has created one of the wonders of the African continent." Image Source: Boston.com.

Nyiragongo Crater: "Encumbered by equipment, Olivier Grunewald must be guided by radio to where he can place his hands and feet." Image Source: Boston.com.

A city made of ice: "Visitors lose themselves in the fantasy-like colorful buildings of the Harbin festival. (Andy Wong/Associated Press)." Image Source: Boston.com.

Carter Gibson's photo of cloud formations on Lake Michigan.

Noctilucent clouds are crystals of ice hanging around 80 kilometres high in the atmosphere that catch the light of the sun long after it has set on the horizon. Natural nacreous clouds occur at altitudes of 20-25 kilometres. The cloud in this image was formed from the exhaust of a missile launched from a distant firing range. Picture: Science Photo Library / Rex Features. Image Source: Telegraph.