Seattle Dawn

23 November 2008 - Daybreak over Seattle

A waning crescent moon in the cloudless, pre-dawn Seattle sky.
Where were the expected fog, rain, and clouds?

The downside of flying from the east to the west coast: morning comes a lot quicker than you're used to. We were up late the night before, the equivalent of 3:00 AM for us easterners. Reina, unfortunately, had slept quite a bit on the plane, and her four-year-old body was up and ready to go by 8:00 AM. But that's Eastern Standard Time, it was only 5:00 AM locally.

My wife entertained her for an hour, then it was my turn. We put on jackets and headed outside for a walk. The upside of flying from the east to the west coast: morning comes a lot quicker than you're used to. The sky was clear, the temperature crisp, and we watched the neighborhood come alive.

Ready to start the day.

On our way back to the house we looked over our shoulders and caught the sun's glow over the Cascades and light fog rolling in from the north. In addition to the crow we found House Finches, Black-capped Chickadees, and Bushtits working over the neighborhood trees. The start of a beautiful day!





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Conjunction (Alpine) Junction

01 December 2008 - Celestial Triangle

I grew up with Schoolhouse Rock as background music to my weekends, making me incapable of hearing the word "conjunction" without automatically adding "junction." So it was fitting that I witnessed the recent conjunction of the crescent moon, Venus, and Jupiter at a pull off in the town of Alpine Junction, NY.

The celestial triangle over Varney Hill in the fading light.
Click the image for a larger view.

To orient you, that's the moon on the left (though you probably figured that out), Venus is the brighter and lower of the two "starry" objects, Jupiter is fainter and higher in the sky.


This is the write up from spaceweather.com (thanks, Aunt Janet!)

Space Weather News for Monday, Dec. 1, 2008
http://spaceweather.com

When the sun goes down tonight, step outside and look south. Beaming through the twilight is one of the prettiest things you'll ever see--a tight three-way conjunction of Venus, Jupiter and the crescent Moon. The event is visible from all parts of the world, even from light-polluted cities. People in New York and Hong Kong will see it just as clearly as astronomers watching from remote mountaintops. Only cloudy weather or a midnight sun (sorry Antarctica!) can spoil the show.

The great conjunction offers something extra to Europeans. For more than an hour on Monday evening, the crescent Moon will actually eclipse Venus. Astronomers call such an event a "lunar occultation." Venus emerging from the dark edge of the Moon is a remarkably beautiful sight. Sky watchers across Europe will be able to see this happen.





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Little Blue Persists

20 November - Snow, Clouds, Sun, and a Little Blue

Today was actually a pretty good day, even if it was a work day. I don't mean to imply that I was slightly depressed. No, I actually like the winter weather, it keeps the bird feeder visitors interesting. The "Little Blue" is a Little Blue Heron, Egretta caerulea, a surprise visitor that has been hanging around Sapsucker Woods Sanctuary since November 7th (I wrote about this bird and its unexpected status in an earlier post). Since its arrival the weather has turned decidedly more wintry.

Little Blue Heron in the snow, center stage in the
little open water left on Sapsucker Woods Pond.

Many of us have been checking to see if the Little Blue is around each day, wondering when the weather will finally drive it to warmer temperatures farther south.

The sky cleared later in the day. Though not
seen directly, the sun made its presence known,
casting a cool light across Sapsucker Woods.

The Little Blue spent the late afternoon
perched on a snowy log after a successful day
hunting in the shrinking patch of open water.

As I was photographing the bird from inside the Cornell Lab of Ornithology the clouds allowed a burst of sun light before sundown. With views like this, is it any wonder we spend so much time watching out of the staff lounge, birds or no birds?

Read more about Little Blue Herons at the All About Birds website.





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A Scene From the Finger Lakes

12 November 2008 - Finger Lakes Scenery


Recently I spent a morning retrieving the recording units we use to study the flight calls of nocturnally migrating birds from various spots surrounding Ithaca, NY. Unlike last year's adventure it was a fairly leisurely exercise, one that begs you to slow down to enjoy the scenery. While I'm more inclined to photograph specific subjects (mostly birds and family) I was inspired to shoot a few "scenes from the Finger Lakes" as I drove through the countryside.

This shot, in my mind, typifies fall in the Finger Lakes. The pale blue sky, thin clouds, and still standing corn seems to be a repeated theme between the lakes (closer to the lakes you get the same sky but vineyards instead of corn). My bird-oriented mind doesn't so much see the dying corn stalks, but the promise of Wild Turkeys, American Crows, deer, and more turkeys through the winter months. I know deer aren't a bird, but anyone driving needs to watch out for them in these parts!




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Sapsucker Woods Sunset

05 November 2008 - Sunset over the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY.

Click the image for a larger version in new window.

Now that the clocks have fallen back an hour I'll wind up leaving work in the dark for the next few months. For the time being it's only almost dark, meaning we occasionally witness a sky painted with broad strokes of orange, red, violet, and pink as the sun sets over Sapsucker Woods. An additional benefit: I watched a Northern Saw-whet Owl fly across the road as I left the parking lot.

That meeting of light and dark is truly a magical moment.




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