Jupiter Rising

I've never sought out a specific planet to photograph but since Jupiter has been low in the sky the last week right after sunset I headed up to one of my favorite perches just east of where I live and setup for some time lapse shots of the twilight to dark skies. This particular shot was the first in that sequence when Jupiter was in the perfect altitude in relation to the mountains (Ragged Ridge).

The curved lines of light in the lower left corner are the headlights of cars headed west on Highway 2, and the town of Index can be seen as the small collection of lights above that and to the left.

This was a very challenging exposure and I think I could do it better if we can get some clear skies before Jupiter's position in the sky moves too far away from this track.