A Lunar Corona Above Grand Place in Belgium (Photo)

A colorful lunar corona above Grand Place, in Brussels city, Belgium, in this image by sky photographer Miguel Claro. (Image credit: Miguel Claro)

Miguel Claro is a professional photographer, author and science communicator based in Lisbon, Portugal, who creates spectacular images of the night sky. As a European Southern Observatory Photo Ambassador and member of The World At Night and the official astrophotographer of the Dark Sky Alqueva Reserve, he specializes in astronomical "Skyscapes" that connect both Earth and night sky. Join Miguel here as he takes us through his photograph "Lunar Corona above Town Hall in Grand Place."

This cityscape shows a colorful lunar corona at the left side of the Town Hall building in the city of Brussels, home to many central institutions of the European Union (EU).

A lunar corona is formed while bright moonlight is diffracted by water droplets in thin clouds that drift in front of the lunar disk. The beautiful building in the foreground is the Town Hall building, a Gothic building from the Middle Ages — built between 1401 and 1455.

The building's main tower is topped by a  statue of Saint Michael slaying a demon. It is located on the famous Grand Place in Brussels, Belgium, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

"The Grand Place testifies in particular to the success of Brussels, mercantile city of northern Europe that, at the height of its prosperity, rose from the terrible bombardment inflicted by the troops of Louis XIV in 1695," according to the UNESCO website.

To see more of Claro's amazing astrophotography, visit his website: miguelclaro.com. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.

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Miguel Claro is a professional photographer, author and science communicator based in Lisbon, Portugal, who creates spectacular images of the night sky. As a European Southern Observatory photo ambassador, a member of The World At Night and the official astrophotographer of the Dark Sky Alqueva Reserve, he specializes in astronomical skyscapes that connect Earth and the night sky.