Only a few lucky people get a chance to experience rare events that happen around the earth and all over our universe through their naked eyes. These events may be earth from space, colorful undersea world, and stars that pass through earth's atmosphere once in a while. But thanks to photographs, every person in the world can enjoy those wonderful and amazing things.
Gunarto Song is a talented photographer based in Indonesia. Recently, he managed to capture a shot of a meteor falling into Mount Merapi, which is the most active volcano in Indonesia. Today, this rare photo has gone viral, with over 30,000 likes attracting everyone’s attention.
Since the first eruption in the 16th century, Mount Merapi has remained an active volcano, frequently throwing out lava and ash. Even its name has the meaning of "Mountain of fire," telling the exact nature of this mountain. It creates such stunning visuals and breaking news when the volcano erupts. So, this place has become a favorite of both Gunarto and other photographers.
Recently he decided to do a photoshoot of this volcano. The current eruption status restricts going within three miles of the volcano. So, Gunarto chose Batu Alien to mount his gear and take the evening scenery of the volcano mountain. Batu Alien is a large stone that the volcano pushed out during an eruption. It sits on a cliff net to Merapi and gives a good view of the volcano. Just as Gunarto was preparing to take pictures, the meteor crashed into the volcano's mouth, and luckily, he managed to capture the image.
According to Gunarto, the meteor looked like a sphere of green light and fell at a very high speed. But his photos look as if a shooting star is falling. That was because he set the shutter speed of his camera at four seconds. That made the image of light appear long, creating a visual beauty of a shooting star to come out from the streak of light of the meteor.
Apart from Gunato’s photos, CCTV cameras in the area also recorded the falling of the meteor on film. Also, two active meteor showers happened in that area that day. One was Eta Aquarid Meteor Shower, and the other was Arietid Meteor Shower. So, the National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (LAPAN) authorities confirmed what fell into the volcano was indeed a meteor. According to them, the meteor emitted a green light because it had a high magnesium content.
Gunarto took a timed photo that came out as a spectacular and marvelous incident we can rarely witness. The image captures the clash between terrible yet beautiful components of nature. Both the elements appeal to the eye but have the power to destroy in a blink of an eye. It brings out the true essence of mother nature to the world.
