Monday, November 22, 2021

Beaver Moon Partial Eclipse

 It was the longest partial eclipse in nearly 600 years.  It started roughly around midnight our time and ended nearly at sunup.  Teaching has been kicking my backside this year as every year, so I didn't stay up too late.  I did get up at 3am to catch the darkness.

It's also taken me several days to get these up, sorry major computer issues.  Hopefully a new computer soon.


I tried photo stacking on these shots.  It makes for a high megabyte but crisp photo but truthfully I need longer lenses for the moon shots.




If you are interested in taking moon shots, there are a few photography tips you need to know.  I suggest Space.com.  Here is a good link with other moon shots taken from around the world.  https://www.space.com/beaver-moon-lunar-eclipse-photos-november-2021

If you search eclipse it will take you to articles on how to do the best photography.  As with my other moon shots here is one of my favorite poems by the Moody Blues at the end of Knights in White Satin:

Breathe deep the gathering gloom Watch lights fade from every room

Bedsitter people look back and lament Another day's useless energy spent

Impassioned lovers wrestle as one Lonely man cries for love and has none

New mother picks up and suckles her son Senior citizens wish they were young

Cold hearted orb that rules the night Remove all color from our sight

Red is grey and yellow white

But we decide which is right And which is an illusion

Until storm season . . . unless something else interesting happens.

Monday, August 23, 2021

Shadows

Sunbeams or crepuscular rays are beams of sunlight shining through clouds. A squal line to the north and west blocked the light at sundown casting shadow. Out of the sunset they're called crepuscular rays, if they end on the other side of the horizon, they become anticrepuscular rays. I tried to do a long panoramic. 

Monday, July 26, 2021

Keeper of the Plains

 A couple Saturdays ago the Flint Hills Writing Project met at the Keeper of the Plains statue in Wichita. I received drone authorization from the FAA to fly a quick mission over the Keeper for a quick picture.  This is due to airspace restrictions in the area.  While I took this photo, another group was shooting a video.  They can be seen in the upper right corner of the picture.


The four areas of the pedestal represent the four elements, earth (upper left) air (upper right), water (lower left), and fire (lower right).  The stones surrounding it represent the 28 days between the full moons.  The seven fire pots near the fire region light up each night for fifteen minutes depending on the weather.

For information on the statue:  

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/keeper-of-the-plains

https://www.wichita.gov/Arts/Pages/Keeper.aspx


Friday, July 16, 2021

East Troublesome Fire Continued

This is a continuation of the East Troublesome Fire.  I went back and oversaturated some of the color to show the life coming back to the burn scar.  Please see my previous blog post:
for more information. Prints available, please contact me at father_thunder(at)cox.net.
































Tuesday, July 6, 2021

East Troublesome Fire Recovery Late June 2021

 The East Troublesome fire started on October 14th, 2020 northeast of Kimmerling, Colorado in the Arapaho National Forest.  The cause of the fire is still being investigated, but this fire became the 2nd most damaging wildfire in Colorado history. The fire claimed a total of 192,457 acres.  Due to low humidity, high winds (the worst day had gusts up to 60 mph), and fallen trees due to beetle infestation, the fire grew 120,000 acres in one day. making it the most rapid-fire expansion in state history.  

Arapaho National Park is still closed and they are currently in a recovery mode called the Emergency Stabilization-Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER).  This is where they will limit the run-off, soil erosion, and protect threatened species' environment.

 The fire nearly made it to the eastern side of Estes Park and to the eastern suburbs of Grand Lake.  Two people died in the Troublesome fire that refused to evacuate.  The fire was brought under control due to a winter storm that hit the area, increasing moisture in the area, cold weather, and lower winds.  Winter conditions greatly slowed the fire and it was 72% contained by November 19th.  By Thanksgiving of last year, the fire was not a threat to any communities.  In the end, over 400 houses and structures were destroyed.

While in Colorado we drove up Co-125 and documented what it looks like now.   While walking around, I found a pile of ashes that looked nearly identical to the soil, except there was no strength to it and my foot sunk down into the hole they covered. 

From https://www.cpr.org/2021/01/25/colorados-east-troublesome-wildfire-may-signal-a-new-era-of-big-fire-blow-ups/























































Sorry for the long post.  

Citations 

https://coloradoencyclopedia.org/article/east-troublesome-fire

https://www.cpr.org/2021/01/25/colorados-east-troublesome-wildfire-may-signal-a-new-era-of-big-fire-blow-ups/

https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7242/