The Milky Way spills across the sky at dark sites like this one in the Tooran desert in eastern Iran. At least 250 billion, and possibly as many as a trillion, stars reside in our galaxy, which takes the shape of a disc 100,000 light years across. (Image: Babak Tafreshi)

The full moon rises above a lighthouse on the Mediterranean Sea in Algiers, Algeria. (Image: Babak Tafreshi)

This hour-long exposure shows the circular trails stars make as a result of the Earth's rotation. In the foreground, 2500-year-old tombs of ancient Persian kings tower high above a site near Persepolis in southern Iran. (Image: Babak Tafreshi) Advertisement

The effects of light pollution are clear in these two images taken at a dark site in northern Iran's Alborz mountain range (top) and in the city of Tehran, just 65 kilometres away (bottom).



At remote sites, 4000 or so stars are bright enough to be seen with the naked eye. (Image: Babak Tafreshi)

This view looks towards the centre of the Milky Way, in the direction of the constellations Sagittarius and Scorpius. (Image: Babak Tafreshi)

The Milky Way hangs above the Sahara Desert. (Image: Babak Tafreshi)

The stars of the Big Dipper float above flowering trees in Haraz valley in Iran's Alborz Mountains. (Image: Babak Tafreshi)

Mars shines over Mount Taftan, a double volcano in southeast Iran, near the border with Pakistan. (Image: Babak Tafreshi)