In winter, it seems the moon is brighter and closer, the air is thinner, and we have a better view of the twinkling night sky as opposed to the warmer months. Amazing things can happen when you bundle up a bit and get out to do some stargazing in the Tar Heel state. That’s exactly what Star Mountain Media did in this incredible video.

Vimeo / Star Mountain Media It took two years of star gazing for this video to be completed. ‘Startrails’ shows the night sky on full speed - what we’d witness if, say, 8PM-6AM occurred in a single minute.

Vimeo / Star Mountain Media It’s no easy feat to capture this, though. After gathering all the footage, then one must go into Adobe After Effects and ‘stack’ all of the long-exposure, high quality digital photographs to create the star trail effect. Once completed, it adds a stunning visual effect with stars moving in life and motion.

The filmmaker traveled to Huckleberry Knob and Salvo, one of the most western and one of the most eastern points in North Carolina, to capture the footage. What you see below is a statewide representation of the breathtaking night sky. Enjoy!

Vimeo / Star Mountain Media

It took two years of star gazing for this video to be completed. ‘Startrails’ shows the night sky on full speed - what we’d witness if, say, 8PM-6AM occurred in a single minute.

It’s no easy feat to capture this, though. After gathering all the footage, then one must go into Adobe After Effects and ‘stack’ all of the long-exposure, high quality digital photographs to create the star trail effect. Once completed, it adds a stunning visual effect with stars moving in life and motion.

It really is beyond incredible, and amazing the technical talent that goes into creating something like this. I could watch this video 100 times and not get tired of it!

Did you like this video? Have you tried any nighttime or star trail photography in North Carolina? Share to show that North Carolina is beautiful day and night, east and west!

If you want to see more mind-bending North Carolina beauty, check out these ten frozen waterfalls.

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