Babak Tafreshi Photography

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Boston, MA
Babak Tafreshi Photography

National Geographic night sky photographer & science journalist, directing The World at Night (TWAN) project.

09/11/2026

I first noticed these “train” of little dots in 2019, soon after Starlink project started launching. In the recent years they became a frequently seen phenomenon and hundreds of UFO sighting reports were linked to Starlink.. The new launched satellites, on their way to the final orbit of about 500 km, appear bright and close to each other for several; nights. Starlink is a commercial project by SpaceX to provide broadband internet and in 2026 reached the milestone of 12,000 satellites in space, with a possible extension to many more. The earth lower orbit and our night sky is becoming very crowded. The environmental impact of mega constellations are notable too. Frequent rocket launches increase black carbon chemicals in the atmosphere which adds to climate change. These satellites have about 5 year of lifetime in space. Out of commission satellites reenter the earth atmosphere and by burning they add industrial materials to our atmosphere such as aluminum oxides, which eventually rain down on us and into the oceans.

08/27/2026

A moment of peace. Aurora, the Milky Way, and stars of the Summer Triangle appear above Gullfoss, a massive waterfall in Iceland, from my Sep. 2024 phototour. I organize two of these programs every year in collaboration with . Learn more on babaktafreshi.com/workshop (link in bio).
Music by composer , a part of our project.

08/12/2026

On a project with the city council of Tarragona in Catalonia I traveled to Spain to document my 15th solar eclipse. I set up multiple automated cameras to include iconic Roman, medieval, and cultural icons of the city. More to come, here and on National Geographic.

08/07/2026

Next week (Aug 10-14) in 40+ planetariums an immersive show that I produced will be screened in collaboration with Phoebe Bridgers Phoebe Bridgers, a critically acclaimed global musical artist, who is organizing a series of immersive early album listening events to coincide with her new album release: Lost Weekend.
The show is entirely made of fulldome cinematography with no computer generated content.
Slide 1: my recent planetarium show in Kansas Exploration Place

07/21/2026

If you are in DC this Thursday July 23, join me at for a talk about my current project: National Parks at Night. The Nat Geo Nights event includes after-hours live music, open to register to anyone 21+.
Tap the link in bio for tickets or search online for “nat geo nights babak”.
Opened to public just a few weeks ago, the Museum of Exploration is home to and . I have a few contributions to the museum, including my first telescope from the 1990s which is exhibited near the “star dome” section in the main Pavillion.

07/07/2026

Painting the Arctic sky in color, aurora ribbons appear against star trails in this animated timelapse. Light of a fishing boat, on the coast of West Iceland, trails on the ocean horizon during the 30-minute sequence.

06/13/2026

The night sky brings peace, balance, joy, and wonder. It has the power to heal and take us away from all the pain around us, at least for some moments. A natural stress medication that I have taken for many years as a night sky photographer!
If you care about natural night sky, and the vast diversity of animals and insects that need natural nights to survive. You can help protecting natural nights by taking simple meaningful actions: change your property’s exterior lights to warmer shielded lights pointed to the ground, use motion-sensor lights where possible. Become a member and advocate for , the leading nonprofit in the fight to reduce light pollution. Visit a dark sky place and take friends and family with you. We need to connect more people to this unrivaled beauty that needs to be protected from our fast growing artificial light. You can also join me on one of the annual programs I have in dark sky places. Next one: Maine Stargazing & Photography Retreat Aug 31-Sep 6, open to all skill levels. Check babaktafreshi.com/maine or tap the link in bio
Music by , a part of our growing project

06/04/2026

Sharing with you a moment of peace with the northern lights in real-time, when an aurora crown made a stunning display in Iceland. I have just announced my 2027 aurora phototours. A couple of spots also opened on the Sep 2026 program. Tap the link in bio or visit babaktafreshi.com/workshop
Music by , a part of our Celestial Orchestra project.

05/29/2026

Announcing a new course for intermediate and advanced skill levels: Milky Way Photography and Star Tracker Secrets. The webinar and live Q&A is on Sunday May 31 at 1pm Eastern Time (10am Pacific, 17:00 GMT). The recording will be provided to all registrants (if you can’t attend live). Please tap the link in bio to register or visit babaktafreshi.com/mw
If you are a beginner I suggest watching my introduction webinar or other courses in the Learning Night Sky Photography Webinars (a set of 14 sessions).
The course focuses on documentary photography criteria, and not digital blends of frames taken from different places or with different lenses. It covers the best months and times of the night to capture the Milky Way in the both hemisphere, camera settings for still, timelapse, and realtime video captures, recommended lenses and accessories (from wide angle views to telephoto closeups), the best star trackers for deeper galactic images and how to use them, and tips on post-processing Milky Way photos.

01/14/2026

Moonlight shines on Iran’s rising mother. The Asia’s highest live volcano Mt Damavand symbolizes Iranian strength, resistance against tyranny, and a national identity in Persian culture. I can’t find beauty in the night sky when my motherland is in pain, where I lived until 2011. I have paused my usual posts and shared stories to be a voice for the voiceless Iranians. I understand your primary connection to my content is peace and inspiration that the night sky provides and I’m sorry if this is disturbing.
What is happening to protesting Iranians is crime against humanity. A population of 90 millions were keep in a total communication cut. Every night, huge crowds are on the streets in all 31 provinces of the country chanting for regime change. The Islamic Republic leader ordered open shooting at unarmed protestors, young and old, family members falling to the ground next to each other, turning the last page of this 47-year nightmare. Iranian opposition media report 12,000-20,000 people are killed in the past few nights, while the scene kept hidden from the world. Survivors who require urgent care are being denied access to state-controlled hospitals or were taken by regime forces. Doctors are warned treating injured protesters is a crime. Families seeking their lost ones are asked by the regime forces to pay 7 Billion Rials (~ $6000) to receive the bodies of protesters it has killed.
This level of violence combined with extreme corruption and economy collapse, explain why Iranians become largely secular, why Iran has the world’s most separated nation from its government, why every few years an uprising happens, and why the nation no longer seek government reform.
For almost half a century Iranians have lost their today and tomorrow, peace and happiness. Art, culture, justice, honesty, and dignity have been constantly suppressed in the name of religion.

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http://babaktafreshi.com/

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