Category: Astronomy

The Major’s Walk-A-Thon

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date December 13, 2008

Sky: Sunny & Clear
Temperature: 54°F
Dewpoint: 43°F
Relative Humidity: 65%
Winds: N 10 MPH
Barometric Pressure: 30.16 Rising

1. When I walked outside this morning at 7:04 AM I exclaimed, “Ooh – Nice and refreshing !’ That was before I hit the 10 MPH winds (with higher gusts). I live within feet of a somewhat elevated Florida’s Turnpike. I didn’t realize that it was such a wind shelter. Once I walked away from it the winds shattered my teeth and pierced my ears.

2. Homestead was shivering, and so was I. I quickly decided that this was not going to be the long 2.0-mile-plus walk that I envisioned. It turned out to be a simple 1.3-mile walk completely around the perimeter of my neighbourhood. I did it in exactly 24 minutes. That’s an average of 3.25 MPH.

3. The Moon was at its closest distance to Earth overnight in nearly 16 years (since March 1993). It was large and bright. I saw it last night as it was climbing the eastern sky, and I saw it again during this morning’s walk as it was dropping towards the western horizon. Last night’s Full Moon was known as the ‘Long Night Moon’ (for obvious reasons). It was up for 14½-hours.

4. I saw no cats outside this morning. They were all keeping warm inside or underneath vehicles. There were a lot of ducks out and about. They too were shivering. They should have gone in the lake. The water was at least 20° warmer than the air. I was looking for ‘lake-effect’ snows as that cold northerly wind blew across the warmer big lake that I walked around.

5. This morning’s walk was certainly uncomfortable, but you can’t make any progress in Life if you’re always comfortable. On God’s fantastic journey you should never get into a groove or think that you’re ‘there’. You’re never there, and there’s always something bigger and better just around the corner. The status quo produces nothing relevant. Sitting in neutral is not living. It’s dying. You’ve got to continue to move forward on this journey – always asking and looking for more. The journey doesn’t end until you’ve been reunited with your Maker. That’s when you know that you’ve finally made it to the Promised Land.

Astronomy Food Health Weather

Tuesday Night Grab Bag O’ Thoughts

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date September 23, 2008

You came here on a Tuesday night for this, and I shall not disappoint you. This week’s theme – hot versus cold.

1. We’ve got light rain here in Homestead right now because we have an incredible phenomenon occurring – an actual wintertime cold front approaching us from the north – in September ! It should ooze on through tonight, and then on the other side of it – clear, crisp, cool, and dry. The sun will shine brightly for a few days, and temperatures will only peak in the mid-80s during the afternoon hours with temperatures early in the morning possibly dropping down into the upper-60s ! It’s just a tiny taste of Autumn !

2. The hot Sun is now south of the Equator. That means that our nights are now slightly longer than our days. It also means that the Sun rises to the south of due east – and sets to the south of due west – but not by much. After all we are in the subtropics.

3. We had no working A.C. in my building at work yesterday, so everyone was hot and sweaty. Temperatures were in the mid-80s inside. It was quite unbearable. They fixed it overnight, and today we had A.C. struggling to cool off our building (from yesterday’s sudden heatwave). Nevertheless 78°F felt much better than 86°F.

4. I ate Lunch with a longtime friend of mine at El Nachito today. I ate enough hot and delicious Mexican food for 3 people. When there was no more food left in front of me I realized that my face was sweating. That happens sometimes when I’ve eaten enough food that could satisfy a small horse.

5. Can you believe this ? I think I’m coming down with my 6TH cold over the past 10 months. The first sign of an impending cold for me is typically a weak sore throat. I felt the first sign of it this morning at work, and I exclaimed, ‘Oh no you didn’t !’ I then took a Zicam, and then I took another one 3 hours later, and then I took another one 3 hours after that (just now). Please cold don’t bother me now with your antics !

Astronomy Hoaxes Internet

Thursday Night Internet Hoax Hall-Of-Shame

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date August 14, 2008

The Red Planet is about to be spectacular !

This month and next, Earth is catching up with Mars in an encounter that will culminate in the closest approach between the two planets in recorded history. The next time Mars may come this close is in 2287. Due to the way Jupiter’s gravity tugs on Mars and perturbs its orbit, astronomers can only be certain that Mars has not come this close to Earth in the last 5,000 years, but it may be as long as 60,000 years before it happens again.

The encounter will culminate on August 27th when Mars comes to within 34,649,589 miles of Earth and will be (next to the moon) the brightest object in the night sky. It will attain a magnitude of -2.9 and will appear 25.11 arc seconds wide. At a modest 75-power magnification Mars will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye.

Mars will be easy to spot. At the beginning of August it will rise in the east at 10 p.m. and reach its azimuth at about 3 a.m.

By the end of August when the two planets are closest, Mars will rise at nightfall and reach its highest point in the sky at 12:30 a.m. That’s pretty convenient to see something that no human being has seen in recorded history. So, mark your calendar at the beginning of August to see Mars grow progressively brighter and brighter throughout the month.

Share this with your children and grandchildren.

NO ONE ALIVE TODAY WILL EVER SEE THIS AGAIN

This widely-circulated perennial E-Mail defies all astronomical logic, and it is of course an Internet HOAX !

Thursday Night Internet Hoax Hall-Of-Shame

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date April 10, 2008
3 Comments on Thursday Night Internet Hoax Hall-Of-Shame

A satellite photo of North America on the night of Thursday August 14TH 2003 – the night of the largest blackout in North American history that affected an estimated 50 million people and caused an estimated 6 billion dollars in financial losses:

Thursday August 14TH 2003