Proposal Soneva Fushi

Transcription

1 Proposal Soneva Fushi Photos, Book, and Visiting Astronomer duties 2018 Lars Lindberg Christensen & Petr Horalek

2 Table of Contents Executive summary 3 1. Photos of outstanding quality Book The Sky Over Soneva Visiting astronomer work Appendix A: Shooting list 8 Sky events (tentative) 9 Appendix B: Examples of Petr Horálek s photos 13

3 Executive summary This proposal outlines a visit of visiting astronomer Lars Lindberg Christensen and world-renowned photographer and astronomer Petr Horalek , to further cement Soneva Fushi as an astrotourism and nature destination. We propose to deliver: 1. At least 75 photos of outstanding quality, mainly but not exclusively of night-time scenery in and around Soneva Fushi. These would be fully Soneva s copyright; 2. A Book tentatively titled The Sky Over the Maldives using many of these night-sky images. This would be fully Soneva s copyright; 3. Visiting astronomer duties In exchange we kindly request: 1. Accommodation : a : 2 persons (Lars Lindberg Christensen + Petr Horalek) in one villa (or moving to different villas during this week could be beneficial for variation in the daytime pictures) b : one villa for Lars Lindberg Christensen + Family (1 adult Eniko Patkos, 1 child, 10 years Oliver Christensen) c : accommodation for Petr Horalek (PH offers to stay in the Host Village if guest occupancy is high). 2. Food and soft drinks : a : 2 adults (LLC + PH) b : 3 adults, one child (LLC and family + PH) 3. 2 economy flights : a. Munich-MLE-Soneva Fushi (LLC) and b. Prague-MLE-Soneva Fushi (PH)

4 1. Photos of outstanding quality We propose a visit of visiting astronomer Lars Lindberg Christensen and world-renowned photographer and astronomer Petr Horalek , to further cement Soneva Fushi as an astrotourism and nature destination. Petr will deliver at least 75 photos of outstanding quality. Some of these subjects have been photographed before, but never at night and we promise that at least 25 of these photos will be in a class of their own. The images will be delivered fully post-processed. Some will be delivered during the trip, and the last latest 8 weeks after returning home. The images will be fully copyright Soneva Fushi. The hope is that these images can be published on the Soneva web page and in the Brand Center in full quality and used by travel magazines etc.

5 Suggested photo credit : Soneva Fushi (P. Horálek/L.L. Christensen) It is suggested that Petr Horálek, in addition, will be allowed to use the images and distribute them via his channels (web, books etc.). Shooting list is in Appendix A. Further suggestions are naturally most welcome. Photo examples are in Appendix B. Optionally a social media campaign/blog posts could be made with daily progress updates as the pictures are post-processed. It may be advantageous to discuss whether there is any flexibility in the island illumination in the week of (to control the light pollution as best as possible). Bio Petr Horalek : Astronomer Petr Horalek only really feels at home under the night sky with his camera. As a citizen of a light-polluted Czech Republic, he decided to capture the night skies above the dark places in the world to show people in cities what are they missing above their heads. Petr specialises in photographing rare night-sky phenomena. His images capture unique moments that capture the immeasurable beauty of a dark starry sky. Petr has travelled all over the Earth in search of dark skies under which to capture interesting astronomical phenomena. A high-res portrait of Petr Horalek is available here: His images can be found here:

6 2. Book The Sky Over Soneva During this stay, we propose to write most of a book tentatively titled The Sky Over Soneva, incl. the needed illustrations and photos. The book would be published and printed by Soneva, and Soneva would own the copyrights. The layout can either be done by Soneva s designers or by LLC and PH, following Soneva s Corporate Identity to maintain consistency with existing publications. We believe we will have material for some pages, but this can be discussed. The main focus would be on what makes the night sky over Soneva and the Maldives so special. Being on the Equator we have access to almost the entire sky! The Milky Way centre is high in the sky and we are far from light pollution. We would discuss the main constellations, have star maps for the different seasons, and talk about the different objects that are visible from the Maldives: planets, stars, a few galaxies, satellites, and the Moon. A future update of this book could include more Maldivian sky lore and cultural references to the night sky (like navigation), if a Maldivian anthropologist or historian with an insight into Maldivian night sky lore and naming can be located. The book would be peppered with stunning photos of the night sky over Soneva Fushi.

7 3. Visiting astronomer work Lars Lindberg Christensen would work over Easter as visiting astronomer as in previous years. Bio: Lars is an award-winning astronomer and science communicator. He has authored a dozen popular science books translated into more than ten languages. Lars has directed several documentaries and planetarium movies that have received critical acclaim around the world. He is responsible for the communication from some of the world's largest and most famous telescopes such as the Hubble Space Telescope (for ESA), the Extremely Large Telescope, the Very Large Telescope, ALMA and La Silla. He has produced for a multitude of different media from planetarium shows, laser shows, to web, social media, print, TV and radio. Lars has more than 200 publications to his credit, most of them in popular science communication and its theory. Lars received the Tycho Brahe Medal in 2005 for his achievements in science communication and is credited with leading the most successful outreach efforts in ESO's history. HIghres photo is on file (or here: ) Suggested duties: 1. Evening openings in the observatory (LLC) 2. Private sessions in the observatory or on cruises (LLC) 3. Optional: Astronomical talk by LLC 4. Optional: Astronomical talk by PH 5. Other duties as requested

8 Appendix A: Shooting list Night shooting will be best in beginning of period (until 16th April; morning shootings with Milky Way bulge and zodiacal light over Soneva Fushi) and in the end (22nd to 27th; mostly evening shootings with f.e. Orion nebulae over the lagoon of western part of island, but also in the island with trees etc.) with moonlight around full Moon (17-21 April) for lagoon photos and selected exteriors. Sunset/sunrise phenomena every day as well as moonset/moonrise (e.g. Full Moon in Venus belt over the island could be an amazingly colourful image); other unexpected phenomena as well (meteors, airglow ) and wide-angle star trails of equator stars movement in the sky (rising over lagoon upright on west/east, circular over south/north). This night shots will be focused primarily on deep, nice panoramas of the night sky plus nice transition images (dusk/dawn) and plenty phenomena (Venus-Mercury conjunction, perhaps some meteors in the sky, moonrise/set etc). Daytime shoots will focus on the nature and the photogenic views of local weather. 1. The Observatory at night 2. Photoluminescence: water + night sky of the coast (near Turtle Beach Jetty C?). Swimming person. Long exposure. 3. Night sky over the bathroom(s) 4. Soneva Aqu a at night 5. Misc. Villa pictures in the daytime 6. Misc. island landscapes in the daytime 7. Sobah s Dinner and restaurant 8. Out of the Blue 9. Fresh In the Garden (incl. restroom at night) 10. Pictures of hosts at work 11. Soneva Jani (?) 12. Sunset Dolphin Cruise 13. Six Senses Spa 14. The Observatory 15. Private Sandbank Overnight Experience 16. Sandbank reception (sunset and the first stars/moon) 17. The Journey 18. Surfing 19. Water Sports

9 20. The Den 21. Soneva Art & Glass 22. Cinema Paradiso 23. Astronomy Dinner Cruise 24. All beaches in all light settings 25. Turtle Beach Champa 26. Dive center 27. Night in the herb/vegetable garden 28. Potential private events on the island in this period (weddings, engagements ) Sky events (tentative) The following list of sky photography targets is very tentative, as exact activities will depend on the planned activities, the local circumstances (weather, availability of exteriors to be photographed etc.), photographer s familiarization with the island and unpredicted/unique phenomena which can occur during photographic sessions (haloes, airglow, meteors, a comet etc). Every evening will also include some sunset shooting (with chances of green flash and unique dusk colours). Date (incl. the night following) Activity 7 April Arrival day. Sunset; evening crescent Moon shooting, whole night photography (night photoluminescence water, night sky of the coast, airglow, Milky Way in the morning, Venus+Mercury+zodiacal light etc.); possibly whole zodiacal light panorama; one of last chance to capture the Large Magellanic Cloud with the Southern Cross and Carina Nebula over the horizon after dusk. 8 April Crescent Moon shooting with dusk, whole night photography (night bioluminescence water, night sky of the coast, airglow, Milky Way in the morning etc., Venus+Mercury+zodiacal light etc.); Milky Way arcs over selected places of the island; evening arc of Milky Way from Perseus to Southern Cross; one of last chance to capture LMC w. Southern Cross and Carina nebula over the horizon after dusk 9 April Wide-angle star trails over the island later before moonset. Night photography (night photoluminescence water, night sky of the coast, airglow, Milky Way in the morning etc., Venus+Mercury+zodiacal light etc.); Milky Way arcs and panoramas over selected places of the island; mostly close by or over Dolphin beach 10 April Midnight Scorpius-Southern Cross panorama (with Jupiter, Saturn, Antares, Rigil Kent and Hadar enhancing) over SE horizon (to

10 11 April Observatory shots be taken from some special island exterior); takes about 2hrs shooting; later some all-sky shooting with Milky Way and Zodiacal Light (best time is local 3-5 am) 12 April Moon First quarter 12 April, 23:06 Soneva time. Night sky over the bathroom. 13 April Soneva Aqua at night 14 April Sobah s Dinner and restaurant, Out of the Blue. 15 April Using moonlight for attempted night swimming shooting 16 April Mostly night shooting by moonlight; Venus-Mercury conjunction in the morning (closest to each other) 17 April Full Moon period; mostly daytime photography (island exteriors, lagoon, underwater) 18 April Full Moon period; mostly daytime photography (island exteriors, lagoon, underwater) 19 April Full Moon 19 April; 15:12 Soneva time, Full Moon period; mostly daytime photography + morning/evening full Moon rising/setting images with dusk/dawn, look for lunar green flashes 20 April Full Moon period; mostly daytime photography (island exteriors, lagoon, underwater) 21 April Full Moon period; mostly daytime photography (island exteriors, lagoon, underwater) 22 April First evening sky shooting with no moonlight (mostly Orion, Vela and Taurus nebulae compositions with island foreground; late in the night peaks the Lyrid meteor shower (although bright Moonlight); sequential photography for the rest of the night, mostly over Turtle beach 23 April Late night sky shooting with no moonlight (mostly Orion, Vela and Taurus nebulae compositions with island foreground; best with water photoluminescence); rest of the night after-peak Lyrids photography; mostly over Turtle beach 24 April First half of night dark sky shooting without moonlight 25 April Late dark sky shooting without moonlight 26 April Moon Last quarter 27 April; 2:19 Soneva time, first half of the night dark for rest of planned shots; departure next day

11

12 Appendix B: Examples of Petr Horálek s photos Examples of Petr Horálek s work More of images can be found here: Starry sky reflecting on Jackson Lake, the US Grand Teton National Park. More and higher resolution:

13 Which way do you want to go? The Milky Way over the path of Mangaia, the Cook Islands. More and higher resolution:

14 Gems of the southern starry sky with Geminid meteor over Tsumkwe, Namibia. More and higher resolution:

15 Left: Stormy Halmahera island by night with the Orion constellation prominent above. More and higher resolution: Right: Stargazing from the world s largest iron meteorite found on the ground in Hoba, Namibia. More and higher resolution:

16 A couple in love gazing the century s longest lunar eclipse with bright Mars and Milky Way over Rhodes Island, Greece. More and higher resolution:

17 How many wishes you want to fulfil? On this multiexposure over two nights, 104 shooting stars of annual Perseid shower of 2016 shined over Králova Studňa, Slovakia. More and higher resolution:

18 Left: The perfectly dark sky over Rarotonga, one of the Cook Islands, allows the Milky Way and zodiacal light to appear over this south-pacific paradise. More and higher resolution: Right: Jewels of southern sky with flames of hydrogen nebulae over martian Atacama Desert, Chile. More and higher resolution:

19 Dramatic sunset over the bay of Waiheke Island, New Zealand. More and higher resolution:

20 Feeling the freedom, excitement and magic of the sunset over the Quivertree forest, Namibia. More and higher resolution:

21 Rising Moon over the Tolaga Bay, New Zealand, where the Moon always rises like this. In this image, the Moon is seen in the direction where James Cook appeared in 1769 to local Maori people. More and higher resolution:

22 Left: Ancient Incas believed the Milky Way is the continuation of water s circle on Earth. Even today the views from water to our Mliky Way bring very exciting feelings. Seč reservoir, the Czech Republic. More and higher resolution: Right: Milky Way rising over Pacific ocean of Waihi Beach, New Zealand. More and higher resolution:

23 Milky Wax within reach over the Atacama Desert, Chile. More and higher resolution: