SPACE - Ever Seen a Four-Planet Sunset?

You have now.

This composite image, captured by astrophotographer Chris Kotsiopoulos, combines a series of photographs snapped from Alikes salt lake in Kos Island, Greece, during last light on May 25th.

NASA claims you can spot four planets in the image. The trails of Jupiter, Venus and Mercury appear from left to right, "dropping toward the western horizon, gathered close in last month's remarkable triple planetary conjunction." The rightmost trail belongs to the brightly gleaming star known as Elnath (Beta Tauri). So where's the fourth planet?

Via NASA: "Of course, in the foreground are the still, shallow waters of Alikes salt lake, reflecting the striking colors of sunset over... planet Earth."

Of course!

We're big fans of Kotsiopolos' work, which we've written about in the past. For more examples of his breathtaking photography, check out his website.

[Greek Sky via NASA]

http://io9.com/ever-seen-a-four-planet-sunset-51323701