> I thought that the Northern Hemisphere was basically pointing away from the Galactic Centre, so shots like this were basically only from South America or Aust

> I thought that the Northern Hemisphere was basically pointing away from the Galactic Centre, so shots like this were basically only from South America or Australia etc. From 40N latitude one can see the sky as far south as -50deg declination (50 degrees south of the celestial equator). It's true that the galactic center is in the southern sky, but it's still visible from the northern hemisphere. If you can see Sagittarius (the teapot), you're looking in the direction of the galactic center. The GP's shot is representative of what one can expect from about 40N. From the southern hemisphere, I've seen shots of the milky way that span from horizon to horizon, so I do think they have the better vantage point.