Observation 3.6

Look for Sirius, the brightest star in the constellation Canis Major.

We are getting closer...

Well... here it is...

Yup.

Okay, the picture is getting better...

 

Date: February 22, 2014
Time: 8:33 - 8:50 pm

Observation: When I went outside today and I looked up at the sky, surprisingly enough, I couldn't find any new constellations, or at least I didn't notice them or the stars were not bright enough for me to see them. But as I looked on with hope that I might have something to record for this week, it sprung upon me that I really wanted to take a zoomed in picture of a star. Now, don't get me wrong, I know I wasn't going to get far with my Sony camera but I wanted to see what would come up, if anything, and this is what I got!

Well, the first star I saw tonight, was Sirius, the brightest star in the constellation Canis Major, the Big Dog. As I zoomed up to the star, it was quite difficult trying to steady my camera because you know how it is if you zoom in your camera to the fullest, the slightest movement and what you are trying to focus on is gone! Well, after struggling with my camera and the camera stand for a good 10 minutes, I finally found Sirius and I took a picture of it. I was not satisfied. As you can tell the first close-up picture I took was the third picture above. It looked like that because my camera was moving and same thing with the next picture. But after I got the camera steady and I took a picture, the star was still not a perfect circle, in fact it was a different color!

Well that, my friends, was due to atmospheric blurring! You see, the atmosphere is a very windy place. Basically, there are currents of wind and a lot of molecules floating and whisking around up in the sky. Now, there is already an inaccuracy of where we think stars are positioned due to how far away we are from them, but because of our windy atmosphere, this makes matters worse. With molecules moving in the sky, the light is actually diffracted which is why there seems to be a halo surrounding the star, even in a clear, still night. Also, due to the windy atmosphere, sometimes the star seems to shift a little, or it will seem to make, as we call it, a twinkling star! So yes, that star in the song that you have heard all your life, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, was never an actual twinkling star, but just a normal (I am using the word "normal" very lightly because every star is unique in its own way) star in which atmospheric blurring is the cause of its dreamy presence. Sorry.

Anyways, be sure to always wonder about things and try to find the answer to them, but don't be surprised if you don't get a straightforward answer, because some things are best to be left unanswered. Rather you should just take the time to be thankful for those things and keep following the stars!

APOD 3.6

What you see here is another amazing work of nature. A pileus iridescent cloud!

Yes, there is another cloud added to the many other sort and arrangements of clouds, but, if I say so myself, this is the prettiest. This cloud is made up of a thin group of water droplets that are around the same size (not all droplets of water are the same size in a cloud, some will collide and condense into bigger droplets, hence what causes bigger clouds and then rain) and diffract an array of colors of sunlight in different amounts.

What is cool about this, though, is that you can see this amazing color any day. All you have to do is go somewhere where the Sun is slightly out of view and view the reflection of the sky in water. In fact, the Sun has to be mostly hidden by thick clouds to let this event happen.

Another thing that can be seen in the photo is that there are unusual ripples above the pileus or cap cloud. This is actually an indication that the lower cloud is getting larger and that a storm is brewing. Unfortunately, as fast as it comes, it disappears in a couple of minutes.

This picture was taken in Zimbabwe before sunset, but don't worry, you don't have to go all the way across the world just to see something like this. You just have to be at the right place at the right time. And do I have to mention again? Keeping looking up!

Camille Flammarion Biography Sources

1. http://adsabs.harvard.edu/full/1925JRASC..19..265M
2. http://www.todayinsci.com/F/Flammarion_Camille/FlammarionCamille-Bio.htm
3. http://www.astrobio.net/amee/spring_2007/retrospections.htm
4. http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Nicolas_Camille_Flammarion.aspx

Observation 3.5

Look at how beautiful the sea looks

The reflection of the Sun's light emphasizes the ripples on the water

If you look hard enough, you can see the shape of the Sun

I think that this picture is just gorgeous! 

Slowly the Sun disappears, yet the light is still lingering

Date: February 14 -17, 2014
Time: 10:21-10:29 am & 6:20-6:42 pm

Observation: I am here! Well if you were wondering, this whole entire weekend I spent my time in Dallas, Texas, which by the way was the best time of my life! Now as you see my pictures are a little different today. They were all taken when I was on the plane, obviously, with the wonderful camera of my phone; it actually didn't take bad pictures.

Whenever I travel via plane, I always hope for the window seat and for most of the beginning and the end of the plane ride I just sit there looking outside, and every time I am amazed. I just love seeing how small everything gets and how beautiful some, emphasis on the some, places are. While I was looking out at the sky going to Dallas, I noticed the curve of the Earth, although very minor in the picture, and the atmosphere. Looking at all of this of course reminded me of astronomy and so I whipped out my phone and started taking pictures on pictures on pictures! I thought the water looked so beautiful from the plane with the reflection of the Sun on it. Since I could see more than my camera could actually capture, I was able to see the curve of the Earth which I have never noticed on a plane. So next time you go on a plane make sure you take note of that.

When was on the flight back to good ole Florida, the night time was outstanding.Obviously the Sun was setting which gave off the wonderful glow. The Sun was behind some clouds at a point and when I focused the camera on the clouds I was able to see the Sun through it which I thought was amazing since the light was already scattered in the clouds. It was also nice to see how there was still light on the Earth even when the Sun had set, indicating how massive and powerful the Sun is.

I know I did not explain anything in this observation, however, I feel like it is important to just admire the Earth and the sky when you get the chance because you just never know when you will ever see it again. More specifically, every day comes with its own beauty so be sure to just take the time to sit back and take in the beauty of the world.

APOD 3.5

Before I say anything, I want you to look at this picture and try to make something out of it.... Okay I will give you a little hint, it has something to do with a superhero or a god.

Give up?.....It's Thor's helmet! Do you see it now? Well, coincidentally that is what this cosmic cloud is called. The other name for it, however, is NGC 2359, but let's stick with Thor's Helmet.

This cloud is up to 30 light years across..... 1 light year is about 6 trillion miles..... so that means 30 light years is about 180 trillion miles........ THAT'S HUGE!! That's like the distance from the Earth to the Moon times around 150,000,000!!!!! What?! It's one thing to say 180 trillion miles but it's another to actually understand that. Well, this structure would be classified as an interstellar bubble. What that means is that there is a massive star in the center of this cloud, which in this one is the Wolf-Rayet star, and the solar wind that is produced from it basically sweeps away or pushes the molecular cloud. Actually, this star is about to become a supernova, which means that soon it is going to blow up. Thankfully, this star is no where near our solar system. If it were even 100 light years away, it would probably not affect our solar system but anything closer, and our whole entire solar system would be annihilated! But luckily the closest star to Earth that will be going into a supernova soon, in terms of star lives, is 640 light years away from us. Other things about this cloud is the beautiful colors that it is producing are due to the oxygen atoms becoming excited.

Just to think how big our galaxy or even space is, is absolutely.... if I say so myself, is impossible. It is just amazing, truly amazing. I will stop here before I overload your brain because I think I just overloaded mine. See you later!

Observation 3.4

Waxing Gibbous

The Moon looks like the Sun!

Date: February 9, 2014
Time: 9:14pm - 9:48

Observation:
Boy, am I glad that it is clear outside today! Just yesterday the night sky was just covered in clouds. Well, today when I went out to record what I saw in the sky, I couldn't see many stars in the sky.

Why?

Well that's because the Moon is a Waxing Gibbous! The Moon is big enough and therefore bright enough to only allow some of the brightest stars appear in the sky. If you haven't noticed before, my pervious pictures of the constellations were taken when the Moon was at a smaller phase or was not visible or where I was at the time. So, unfortunately I was not able to record any new constellations. However, in the last photo you can see that you can still see a lot of the constellations such as Orion and Canis Major and Lepus.

I know I have only been showing really one side of the night sky, and the only reason for that is that I haven't really gotten the grasp of that side. I do have a map of the constellations for each season (this season would still be considered as winter. Yes it is still winter for all you Southerners) however, when you try looking at the placement of the constellations in the actual sky, it can be quite difficult. Sometimes a constellation will be higher than you thought it would be or more to one side than the other. But I guess that is just the challenge.

To this day, I am still amazed on how far we have gotten with technology in that we are able to take pictures of the Moon with so much detail! I truly hope that all these things will amaze you, but know that all that we have is nothing compared to the complexity of our solar system; at least that's what I think. Well, see you next week!

APOD 3.4

Taken in Yunnan Province in China, this photo was taken on January 25 after sunset. Since there is not much light in this area, the beautiful rice terraces capture the millions of stars seen in the night sky. Something unusual about this photo though is the red tinted sky. Although this red light would only be slightly visible to the naked eye, after a long exposure, the camera was able to capture this gorgeous phenomena.

 Now people might mix this up with an aurora, however, they are different. First of all, an airglow is something that can happen all around the world while an aurora can only take place up at the poles. Another thing that is different is that an airglow is caused by short wavelength solar radiation and an aurora is caused by solar wind which emits charged particles that excite the atoms. What is making this airglow is chemiluminescence. That is the production of light through a chemical excitation. The ultraviolet light excites oxygen and nitrogen atoms which collide with other atoms. The red glow the made only where there are less atoms in the sky for the oxygen to collide with which allows it enough time for the excited atoms to go back to its normal state and have their energy radiated away. What makes it cooler is the fact that an airglow can happen day or night although night time would be your best chance of seeing it.

Although this picture shows the beauty and the mysteries of our solar system, it s unfortunate that there is some light pollution that can be seen in the picture where there is artificial light. People over there are not able to acknowledge something so amazing that s literally right above their own homes. Thankfully, however, we are able to have people like these to take these amazing pictures of the night time sky so we will all appreciate our world more. Don't forget to keep following the stars!

Observation 3.3

Let's see if you can find Ursa Major

Were you right?




This is actually how the constellation is supposed to look like though not many know that. The part in the yellow is the most common perception of this constellation.

                                                For those of you who needed a better visual.

Date: February 2, 2014
Time: 12:00 am- 12:30 am

Observation:
Good news! The sky isn't cloudy any more! Well, when I happily went outside today, right smack dab in front of me was Ursa Major, also known as the Great Bear or the Big Dipper. In all honesty, when I saw the constellation I only saw the Big Dipper part and only when I started researching this constellation I then remembered that there was more to the constellation. Since the sky was really clear today, I took the chance to bring my parents out and told them about the constellations in the sky and some of their stories. They were quite confused but I'll just take that they are proud of me... I hope.

Being one of the most known constellations on Earth, many cultures have seen this constellation as a big dipper or even a plough. However, there are many stories and explanations of this one very big constellation. The story that I am going to tell you about is the Greek story of the Great Bear. This story also has a lot of interpretations but I am only going to say one of them.

Once upon a time, there was a girl named Callisto who was the daughter of the king of Arcadia, Lycaon. Callisto joined the party of the goddess of hunting, Artemis, where she dressed the same way as the goddess and whom she swore chastity too. One day, Callisto had decided to rest underneath some trees when Zeus caught sight of her and fell in love. Being the god he was, Zeus pretended to be Artemis and when he got close enough he revealed himself to her and had her way with her despite Callisto's struggles. After a couple of months, the hunting party came upon a river and had decided to bathe. As Callisto undressed, her pregnancy was revealed and Artemis, enraged, banished her. Soon after, when Callisto gave birth to her son Arcas, Hera, Zeus' wife, knew about Zeus' and Callisto's affair and wanted revenge. Hera came to Callisto and dragged her down by the hair and made her turn into a bear. For 15 years Callisto was bear in which she was hunted, but one day she came upon her son who did not recognize her, for after all she was a bear, and was about to kill her when Zeus came and placed them both in the sky; Callisto as Ursa Major and Arcas as Bootes. Hera, seeing that Callisto was now being revered in the heavens, she went to her parents, Tethys and Oceanus, gods of the sea, and convinced them to never let Callisto  bathe in the northern waters, which is why if you are in the northern hemisphere Ursa Major never sets below the horizon.

I thought that this was a very sad story, and quite unfortunate too; but then again so are many of the stories of the other constellations. Oh well, these are the stories that made these constellations so I'm not going to complain! Well, until next time! Just keeping following the stars!