Astrophotographer Captures Skydiver with Sun: ‘Fall of Icarus’

Astrophotographer Andrew McCarthy captured stunning 'Fall of Icarus' photo: a skydiver aligned with the sun. YouTuber Gabriel C. Brown jumped from 3,500 feet. The shoot required thorough preparation.

The minute of the jump, recorded in hydrogen alpha light to settle the sunlight’s atmosphere.We determined to launch the photo in print- both as an up close shot and showing the full disc of the sun, which you can see right here: https://t.co/K4DovGV4ni pic.twitter.com/hYHg7rZXdKNovember 13, 2025

The ‘Fall of Icarus’ Photo

The skydiver in the photo was the YouTuber and musician Gabriel C. Brown, who jumped from a little propeller-powered craft at an elevation of around 3,500 feet (1,070 meters), around 8,000 feet (2,440 m) from McCarthy’s camera. Brown shared a number of behind the curtain images of the shoot in an Instagram post, consisting of a video of him and McCarthy celebrating the shot.

The greatest issue the pair faced was that the aircraft they utilized was a great deal more difficult to accurately track with the sky than they first thought, McCarthy stated. “Recording the sun is something I’m quite familiar with, but this added new obstacles.”

Challenges and Preparation

Astrophotographer Andrew McCarthy has snapped a striking shot of a sky diving YouTuber perfectly aligned with the fiery surface area of the sunlight. The unlikely image, called “The Fall of Icarus,” required thorough preparation to carry out.

Harry is a U.K.-based senior personnel author at Live Science. He studied marine biology at the College of Exeter prior to educating to come to be a reporter. He covers a wide variety of topics consisting of area expedition, worldly science, room weather, climate modification, animal habits and paleontology. His recent work with the solar optimum won “finest space submission” at the 2024 Aerospace Media Honors and was shortlisted in the “leading scoop” classification at the NCTJ Awards for Excellence in 2023. He likewise writes Live Science’s weekly Planet from area collection.

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Harry is a U.K.-based senior team author at Live Scientific research. He covers a broad range of topics including area expedition, planetary scientific research, area weather condition, environment modification, pet habits and paleontology. He likewise creates Live Scientific research’s regular Planet from space series.

Behind the Scenes of the Jump

The photo was caught on the first and only jump of the day, McCarthy added. Despite weeks of thorough planning, it took 6 efforts to properly line up the aircraft with the sunlight. You can see the specific minute Clarke entered a video uploaded to X by McCarthy (see below).

An astrophotographer has actually recorded a stunning shot of a dropping skydiver flawlessly straightened with the fiery surface of the sun, making it seem like the air-borne traveler is rolling with the vacuum of area in front of our home star.

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