Sunrise on Cerro Paranal

Camila closed the dome at sunrise. She wrote up her notes. She put on a warm jacket. Then she walked out onto the catwalk with Polly on her shoulder.

The sun was not yet up. The Milky Way was fading in the east.

They did not speak for some minutes.

"This is the best moment of the night shift," Camila said. "Right before sunrise. The data is on its way to Germany. The dome is closed."

A pale line appeared in the east behind the Andes. Then a glow. Then the first arc of the sun.

The light was almost white. The air was thin and clear.

The domes lit up first. Then the catwalk. Then Camila's hands.

Camila put one hand on Polly's back. "You are leaving today," she said. "I can always tell."

Polly tilted her head.

"Thank you for being here," Camila said. "The next visitor will be a graduate student. Then a journalist. None of them will be a parrot. I will remember the parrot."

Diego came out with two thermoses of coffee. He gave one to Camila. He nodded at Polly. The three of them watched the sun rise.

When it was up, Polly stretched her wings. She lifted from Camila's shoulder. She circled the four domes once. Then she banked east toward the Andes.

The Atacama dropped below her. The domes became small white spots. Then they were gone.

She flew on toward whatever was next.