A wide night view looking down on the rubber-stained of runway 27R at Heathrow Airport. During a time-exposure and partially-lit by the headlights and spotlights of an airfield emergency vehicle, we see the giant numbers 27 that landing pilots will see from a mile away as they descend towards the airport's threshold. The numbers relate to the compass bearing that the line of the runway takes: In this case 270 degrees from north and has a parallel southern twin. Across the number two we also see a set of taxiway lights that help the steering pilot navigate across the airfield and line-up on the departing runway.
From writer Alain de Botton's book project "A Week at the Airport: A Heathrow Diary" (2009).