Sky Guide app

Filmy Gauze – ND #7

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Waxing Moon Wrapped in a Filmy Gauze – Photo: L. Weike

Filmy Gauze

It’s only right that I give you an update on my effort to enjoy the Geminids last night. As I mentioned, when I took the pups out to be watered and saw how the moon was wrapped in a filmy gauze, I didn’t hold out a lot of hope. Nevertheless, I persisted.

I published my post and waited until the recommended witching hour (2:00 a.m.) to give myself the best chance of seeing these vaunted meteors. The moon, hanging even lower in the western sky than earlier, remained hazy. But looking directly up? Oh my. A crisp and pure December atmosphere only enhanced the brilliance of the stars above.

(l to r) Sirius, Orion, Betelgeuse (above Orion) and Rigel (below Orion) – Photo: L. Weikel

Clarity Rewarded

I drove to the former horse farm (one of my two favorite stargazing haunts) and, surrounded by fields, turned off the car and plunged myself into darkness. The chill wasn’t too bad – it was only 30 degrees. My Sky Guide app on my phone made it clear the Geminids would be emanating from directly overhead, so I just leaned back against my car and took it all in.

In the half hour I spent there, I saw about 12 meteors. They were zipping here and there – certainly not heading in a dominant direction, nor did they seem to originate from anywhere specific. The majority were sprite-like, similar to most meteoric displays, playfully catching my attention out of the corner of my eye.

But at least three times brilliant yellow arcs blazed across the sky. I felt such a sense of joy when those ‘big ones’ occurred – as if they were heavenly gifts just for me.

Of course, I had to give my other favorite spot a chance to dazzle me. I parked in the rutted dirt of the field’s tractor entrance for about ten minutes. And yet I was rewarded here, too, with a handful of little spritzers and one magnificent beauty. Every large meteor I saw last night all was left a lemon yellow tail, while the little ones were brilliant white.

Screen shot from Sky Guide app – Photo: L. Weikel

Other Sights

The most prominent sector of the night sky that caught my attention contained Sirius and the constellation Orion, which includes Rigel and Betelgeuse. I’m always surprised by how red Betelgeuse appears and how brilliant Sirius can be, although my photos didn’t seem to catch the red hue very well.

I’m including the star map from my Sky Guide for reference.

What a treat it was to converse with the stars. Contemplating the immensity of space always takes my breath away.

(T+7)

Wolf Moon – Day 809

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Full Wolf Moon – Photo: L. Weikel

Wolf Moon

Tonight’s full moon is known as the Wolf Moon. It’s also known as the Cold Moon, which for obvious reasons is teeth-chatteringly appropriate this evening. At least that’s true for here in eastern Pennsylvania.

It’s been a while since I wrote about the stars, moon, or planets. I’m not sure why; the past several nights we’ve marveled at how the stars look almost telescopically closer due to the heightened clarity of the winter atmosphere. My Sky Guide app has been getting a workout.

And the moon – as it’s grown from the tiniest sliver over the past two weeks to the blockbuster beacon it is tonight, we knew she’d practically be blinding in her brilliance as long as the clouds held off. Even the smallest crescent this month threw moon shadows. It’s frustrating when the best nights to stargaze (even with the floodlight of a full moon drowning out the paler of the pantheon) are so bitterly cold.

Funny Coincidence

As I may have mentioned the other night, tonight’s full moon is occurring in the sign of Leo. Aside from bringing a bit of drama into our lives and emotions, I discovered a literal connection to tonight’s Leo moon.

Tonight we had another Wagon in the Shamanic Caravan. As I’ve mentioned before, I conduct these Wagons on Zoom. Most people when they’re journeying lay down or get comfortable in a chair, so during the time that they’re actually journeying, they’re usually out of my line of sight.

It took all I could not to burst into laughter, then, when I looked at the video feeds from all the participants on my laptop and all but one had a cat looking right at me. Seeing them all looking at me – looking right into the camera, so to speak – was just a little bit spooky! And then I glanced to my left and there was Cletus, at first just sitting there (like the rest of them!) looking at me. Then he mrrrowed and threw himself on the floor, squirming on his back in playful half-moons, assuming a submissive position that I know full well would result in bloodshed if I actually reached out to pet him.

Yes…I know his tricks. Luckily for me, though, I was rattling, so I wasn’t tempted.

Guardians

The fact that all the cats were especially attentive to the journeying this evening was interesting. They definitely appeared to be in serene guardian poses as their humans ventured off on adventures of consciousness.

One thing I will say: the moon had some fascinating messages for all of us this evening.

(T-302)

Cosmic Parade – Day 626

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Saturn Jupiter Moon Antares – Photo: L. Weikel

Cosmic Parade

Oooh, I am so glad we waited until the sun set before taking our walk this evening. By shifting our usual trek time to more than an hour later than usual, we ended up experiencing an array of unexpected treats – including witnessing a veritable cosmic parade.

It was hot today. Perhaps not quite as oppressive as it was last week, but pretty darn close. I’ll admit that I made the mistake of watching Bill Barr’s testimony yesterday before the House Judiciary Committee, and today I paid attention to the news as the day unfolded. Witnessing what’s going on in the world, especially in our country, at the moment is enough to test even the most even-keeled person’s resolve to remain detached and chill.

And Karl and I have both been inexcusably indolent lately. We actually failed to take a walk two days in a row – both Monday and Tuesday – in spite of the fact that we desperately needed to walk the frustration off. So today we were both adamant that we wouldn’t capitulate to the temptation to stay at home in the air conditioning.

Not the Comet

As we rounded the third leg of our shorter journey this evening, the waxing moon was so brilliant, she was throwing stark moon shadows. Glancing up at her in the sky, I noticed a reasonably bright object slightly below and to the right of the moon. I wondered if it was a planet, so I whipped out my phone to check my Sky Guide app.

Actually, I discovered it was the star Antares, which is a red supergiant located at the heart of the constellation Scorpius. (I only know this courtesy of Sky Guide.)

Cosmic Parade – Photo: L. Weikel

But the cosmos had snagged my attention. The sky was growing darker and darker, making more and more of our ‘hatun chaskas’ (great Star brothers and sisters) visible.

One extremely bright object in the sky initially had us thinking it must be the lights on a plane approaching. Nope; it was Jupiter. I then excitedly realized that just to the left and a little below Jupiter was Saturn, not quite as bright as Jupiter, but definitely one of the brighter objects in the sky.

We were delighted to witness this parade of planets: Saturn, Jupiter, Moon – with Antares thrown in as a bonus. (I know the moon isn’t a planet.) I guess the better description is a cosmic parade.

Here is how Sky Guide displayed what we were observing:

Sky Guide screen grab – Photo: L. Weikel

If you get a chance to take a walk tomorrow night, I highly recommend that you get outside around 9:00 p.m. and take a look in the southwest sky. Oh my.

 

(T-485)

Behold the Delta Aquariids!   – Day 259

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Aquariids 2019 – Photo: abc7.com

Behold the Delta Aquariids!                                                          

I love learning about stuff. And until yesterday or the day before, I don’t think I’d ever heard of the Delta Aquariid Meteor Shower before.

I’ve been a devotee of the Perseids for decades and decades – pretty much all my life, to be honest.

Perseids or Aquariids?

I remember going down the cliff to the beach at the Cape, where the expansiveness of the sky was the greatest (notwithstanding Nauset’s “I-Love-You” light sweeping across the ocean and then across the scrub pines near the cottage). Yes, I remember the odd sensation of the sand of both the cliff and the beach feeling cool between my toes, even as I could dig them deeper to reach some residual warmth that had baked in a little below the surface.

But the Perseids usually peak in August (right around both Karls’ birthdays). It’s been a family ritual to jump into the car and drive about a mile from our house so we could lay out in a field to get the widest possible view of the entire sky. All my guys have indulged me in my delight at witnessing meteor showers and other astronomical events. They’re among my most treasured memories.

forbes.com

A Little More on the Aquariids

So I find it a little weird that I’ve never heard of the Delta Aquariids. They’ve been falling (meaning we’ve been passing through the debris of the MachHolz Comet) since approximately July 13thand will last until August 28th. The best opportunity to see the greatest number of ‘shooting stars’ (although obviously, technically, they are neither shooting nor stars – discuss), though, is tonight and probably tomorrow night, when there will be the most particles entering our atmosphere and the sky will be darker longer because it is a “new moon.”

And…Capricornids?!?

Apparently we’re in for ‘dueling’ meteor showers this year. If you follow the tail of each meteor you see, you can use your Sky Guide app to figure out where it originated. That’s one way to identify if it was one of the Aquariids, Capricornids, or Perseids.

I’m happy to report that I’ve already seen two gorgeous, surprisingly slow-moving arcs of light travel across the sky tonight. And there’s been an added lightning show taking place in the northern sky as well, which is a little off-putting, since there are no clouds in the sky.

My sightings this evening were actually quite a surprise. Everything I’ve read recently has recommended that you go outside and look up around midnight, so I was definitely looking up simply because I was outside!

One More Immersion Into the Night Sky

As soon as I publish this post, I’m going to go outside one more time to see what I can see.

As I’ve mentioned before in my various posts about eclipses and things, I adore witnessing natural phenomena.  And as I lay on my back staring up at the sky tonight, I felt that sense of being such a teeny, tiny part of a vast and virtually limitless Universe.

I am in awe.

So I strongly urge you to turn out all your outdoor lights right now and venture outside. Unless, of course, you’re reading this Monday morning, in which case set your alarm and go out this evening at around midnight. You’ll be glad you did!

(T-852)