Turkish Photographer Wins Award for Space Photography

Turkish Astrophotographer Honoured for Space Photography Astrophotographer Mehmet Ergün, known for capturing photographs of rare moments in space, has imaged the International Space Station passing in front of the sun alongside SpaceX's Crew Dragon capsule. Ergün's photograph has been selected by NASA as the photograph of the day award. Astrophotographer Mehmet Ergün uses specialized telescope equipment to image celestial bodies such as galaxies, the Milky Way and stars in space, which are impossible to see with the naked eye, producing remarkable photographs. Those who view these space images—which at first glance seem unreal and appear to be scenes from science fiction films—are left astonished. To capture the rare moment of the International Space Station passing in front of the sun, he spent months preparing. Capturing those moments required months of preparation and technical trials. The photograph he took received NASA's astronomy picture of the day award on 3 May 2021. The detail that makes the photograph particularly special is that SpaceX's Crew Dragon capsule, sent to space by Elon Musk's company, was docked to the space station at that moment.

Space Is Not as Dark as Thought

Ergün's interest in space began in his native Niğde, where he observed the skies as a child. When he turned 6 years old, he moved to Germany with his father and continued his life there. He began his first space photography in 2014 by imaging the phases of the moon. Later, using specialized telescopes and cameras, he attempted to show through his photographs that space is not dark and black.

Hours of Preparation for a Single Second of Shooting

Niğde-born astrophotographer Mehmet Ergün spoke about his interest in space and his work as follows: "I came to Germany at age 6; my interest in space began in a village in Turkey. I photograph rare sky events. For example, a lunar or solar eclipse, the International Space Station passing in front of the sun or moon, or a comet approaching Earth. I use very specialized telescopes for shooting; the images I capture can only be recorded by the camera sensor at specific wavelengths. I can learn the exact timing of special transits down to the second through specific applications. I need to prepare for 10 hours to shoot for 1 second."

Photograph Selected as Astronomy Picture of the Day

Ergün, whose space photographs have been honoured with an award by NASA, stated: "The most special photograph I took features the SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule. My photograph was selected by NASA as APOD (Astronomy Picture of the Day) on 4 May 2021. Many space enthusiasts around the world follow these images. Most often, photographs taken by NASA during space missions are published here. Amateur astrophotographers are rarely honoured with this award. This is the highest award an astrophotographer can receive. I was honoured with this award with my photograph of the International Space Station passing in front of the sun. I want to visualize and share the invisible with people and show that space is not black and dark. We can only take a photograph of the past, which is in a sense time travel. Imaging space makes me feel how small we are and how insignificant we are in space."