"This photo captures the first full Milky Way arch ever taken at this location," revealing the night sky over Argentina's UNESCO site, a landscape shaped over 200 million years and home to Earth's only complete Triassic record

['Kim Bunermann', 'News Editor', 'Layer Van-Ds .Vds-Author Font-Size Var --Text-Base', 'Font-Size Var --Vds-Author-Font-Size', 'Var --Text-Base', 'Line-Height Var --Text-Base--Line-Height', 'Line-Height Var --Vds-Author-Line-Height', 'Var --Text-Base--Line-Height', 'Letter-Spacing Var --Tracking-Normal', 'Letter-Spacing Var --Vds-Author-Letter-Spacing'] Latest from Digital Camera World 2026-08-03 10:09:04

For Gonzalo Javier Santile, Valle de la Luna, Universo Triasico Ischigualasto represents exactly that: the first photograph showing a complete Milky Way Arch above Parque Provincial Ischigualasto, known as Valle de la Luna, in San Juan, Argentina. Santile's achievement was recognized as his image was selected for Capture the Atlas' 2026 Milky Way Photographer of the Year collection, which celebrates exceptional night-sky photography from around the world. But creating the image required far more than technical skill. Working alongside a local guide, Santile used an astro-modified DSLR, a wide-angle lens and a star tracker to capture the sweeping Milky Way arch above Ischiqualasto's unique landscape. Guided by local experts, accessing the site required extreme care.