[neilep]

Big Dipper/The Plough and Sunflowers




3003144.jpg (101.35 kB . 584x777 - viewed 10581 times)
By: Tamas Ladanyi

[neilep]

Space Station and Discovery Shuttle




3003175.jpg (115.94 kB . 878x629 - viewed 10418 times)
By: Tamas Ladanyi

The space shuttle Discovery and the International Space Station pass across the sky above Hungary. The shuttle was separated from the station on the way back home. This was the last flight of Discovery before getting retired. Discovery appears surrounded by haze because the shuttle was in the process of dumping wastewater when this sequence of images was taken.

[neilep]

22-Degree Halo Over Dayton, Ohio

6a0105371bb32c970b014e60423124970c.jpg (111.72 kB . 749x486 - viewed 10875 times)

Photographer: John Chumack
Summary Author: John Chumack; Jim Foster

The photo above showing an eye-catching 22-degree halo and upper tangent arc was captured just before sunset over Dayton, Ohio on January 21, 2011. Halos form from pencil-shaped ice crystals, typically found in cirrus clouds, having no preferred orientation. Sunlight passing through the side faces of these crystals is refracted 22 degrees from the initial angle of incidence before exiting through an alternate side face. If the long axes of some of these same crystals are aligned so that they lie nearly in a horizontal orientation, upper tangent arcs (tangent to the top of the halo) may take shape. Always protect your eyes when looking toward the Sun.

[neilep]

Red Snow in Upstate New York

6a0105371bb32c970b014e60c5ce00970c.jpg (126.3 kB . 590x356 - viewed 10673 times)
Photographer: Carl Crumley
Summary Author: Carl Crumley; Jim Foster

The photo above showing a patch of reddish snow was taken this past winter near Medina, New York. The coloration is caused by the presence of an algae, Chlamydomonas nivalis, which in addition to chlorophyll is composed of a carotenoid pigment. Sometimes referred to as "watermelon snow," it often proliferates in melting snowpacks. Meltwater hastens its distribution.

[Edge03zn]

Ohk thanks for the links. I was under the impression that this was a display of superhuman monk powers (like levitation) and he was left unscathed.

But still f%&kin amazing.

[neilep]

Mycorrhizal Fungi


6a0105371bb32c970b014e89d15d09970d.jpg (92.31 kB . 936x624 - viewed 10558 times)

Photographer: Phil Lachman
Summary Author: Phil Lachman

The photo above shows a lovely group of mushrooms nestled against the trunk of a eucalyptus tree. The association between the fungi and the tree however is no accident. This is a mutualistic relationship, where the two species assist each other, and in fact probably would be poorer without each other. Mutualism is any relationship between two species of organisms that benefits both species. Up to a quarter of the mushrooms you see while walking through the woods actually make their living through a mutualistic relationship with the trees in the forest. Remember of course that the mushroom is just the reproductive structure of a far more extensive organism consisting of a highly intertwined mass of fine white threads called a mycelium.

The word mycorrhiza is derived from the Classical Greek words for "mushroom" and "root." In a mycorrhizal association, the fungal hyphae of an underground mycelium are in contact with plant roots but without the fungus parasitizing the plant. While it's clear that the majority of plants form mycorrhizas, the exact percentage is uncertain, but it's likely to lie somewhere between 80 and 90 percent. When the fungus’ mycelium envelopes the roots of the tree the effect is to greatly increase the soil area covered by the tree’s root system. This essentially extends the plant’s reach to water and nutrients, allowing it to utilize more of the soil’s resources. This mutualistic association provides the fungus with a relatively constant and direct access to carbohydrates, such as glucose and sucrose, supplied by the plant. In return the plant gains the benefits of the mycelium's higher absorptive capacity for water and mineral nutrients (due to comparatively large surface area of mycelium-to-root ratio), thus improving the plant's mineral absorption capabilities

[neilep]

Lenticular Clouds Over Wales

July 26, 2011


6a0105371bb32c970b01538fe240ce970b.jpg (101.96 kB . 1032x688 - viewed 10651 times)


Photographer: Graham Stephen; Graham's website
Summary Author: Graham Stephen; Jim Foster

These stacked lenticular clouds were observed from the A5 Road just east of Tryfan, Wales, in the mountain pass between the Carneddau and Glyderau ranges. Normally found in the lee of mountains, altocumulus lenticularis are a type of stationary wave cloud that results when air is forced to rise over elevated terrain. Water vapor within the wave layer condenses at the wave crest if the temperature is sufficiently cool (dew point temperature), forming a smooth, lens shaped cloud. The cloud evaporates due to adiabatic heating when it sinks into the drier wave trough. In this way, clouds appear at intervals closely related to the wavelength.

source: http://epod.usra.edu/

[neilep]

Cloud Iridescence



Iridescence_Cloud_001.jpg (121.16 kB . 953x629 - viewed 12126 times)


Cloud iridescence is the occurrence of colors in a cloud similar to those seen in oil films on puddles, and is similar to irisation. It is a fairly uncommon phenomenon and is usually observed in altocumulus, cirrocumulus and lenticular clouds but very rarely in Cirrus clouds.[1][2][3] The colors are usually pastel but sometimes they can be very vivid. Iridescence is most frequently seen near to the sun with the sun's glare masking it. It is most easily seen by hiding the sun behind a tree or building. Other aids are dark glasses or observing the sky by its reflection in a convex mirror or in a pool of water.

Iridescent clouds are a diffraction phenomenon. Small water droplets or even small ice crystals in clouds individually scatter light. Large ice crystals produce halos, which are refraction phenomena rather than iridescence. Iridescence should similarly be distinguished from the refraction in larger raindrops that gives a rainbow.

If parts of the clouds have droplets (or crystals) of similar size the cumulative effect is seen as colors. The cloud must be optically thin so that most rays encounter only a single droplet. Iridescence is therefore mostly seen at cloud edges or in semi-transparent clouds. Newly forming clouds produce the brightest and most colorful iridescence because their droplets are of the same size. When a thin cloud has droplets of similar size over a large extent the iridescence takes on a structured form to give a corona, a central bright disk around the sun or moon surrounded by one or more colored rings.


SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA

[neilep]

Eternal Flame Waterfall





6a0105371bb32c970b0148c6d7bbca970c.jpg (108.62 kB . 659x669 - viewed 12870 times)

Photographer: Carl Crumley
Summary Author: Carl Crumley; Jim Foster


It seems that there's only one waterfall in the world with a flame burning beneath it. This is the Eternal Flame Waterfall, on Shale Creek, in Chestnut Ridge Park, near Buffalo, New York. A pocket of natural methane gas in an alcove below the waterfall seeps out through a fracture in the rocks. The flame goes out from time to time (it's not really eternal) but is easy to relight. We'll probably never know who the first person to light it was

[neilep]

StratoSpera Balloon Flight


6a0105371bb32c970b014e8923dfea970d-750wi.jpg (59.87 kB . 750x1000 - viewed 10079 times)

Stratospera1-burst-balloon
Image created by Francesco Bonomi
Summary Author: Paolo Amoroso

This image shows an onboard look from the Italian StratoSpera 1 (STSp-1) balloon flight high above central Italy. It was taken from an altitude of approximately 53,360 ft (16,260 m). In the foreground is the burst balloon, which became entangled in the gondola and parachute lines during descent. This view over Tuscany, where the balloon reached its apex, faces the Tyrrhenian Sea. Elba island is visible at right beyond the coast. STSp-1 reached a maximum altitude of 17.1 mi (27.6 km) -- in the mid stratosphere. This balloon and others like it offer a rather inexpensive way to acquire high altitude photography and to sample ambient meteorological conditions.

[neilep]

A Sun Pillar Over Ontario




sunpillar_stankiewicz_3888.jpg (72.59 kB . 640x432 - viewed 10072 times)

Image Credit & Copyright: Rick Stankiewicz (Peterborough Astronomical Association)


 What is that on the horizon? No, it's not an alien starship battling distant Earthlings, but rather a sun pillar. When driving across Ontario, Canada in early June, the photographer was surprised to encounter such an "eerie and beautiful" vista, and immediately took pictures. When atmospheric air is cold, ice sometimes forms flat six-sided crystals as it falls from high-level clouds. Air resistance then causes these crystals to lie nearly flat much of the time as they flutter to the ground. If viewed toward a rising or setting Sun, these flat crystals will reflect sunlight and create an unusual column of light -- a sun pillar as seen above.

[neilep]

Roll Cloud Over Wisconsin



rollcloud_pierrecb_3072.jpg (88.9 kB . 576x432 - viewed 10148 times)

Image Credit: Pierre cb, Wikipedia


 What kind of cloud is this? A type of arcus cloud called a roll cloud. These rare long clouds may form near advancing cold fronts. In particular, a downdraft from an advancing storm front can cause moist warm air to rise, cool below its dew point, and so form a cloud. When this happens uniformly along an extended front, a roll cloud may form. Roll clouds may actually have air circulating along the long horizontal axis of the cloud. A roll cloud is not thought to be able to morph into a tornado. Unlike a similar shelf cloud, a roll cloud is completely detached from their parent cumulonimbus cloud. Pictured above, a roll cloud extends far into the distance as a storm approached in 2007 in Racine, Wisconsin, USA.

[Karen W.]

Incredible photos Neil.. thanks for posting them and the links!

[neilep]

Sauropod Print in Dinosaur Valley State Park

6a0105371bb32c970b014e8ab809be970d-750wi.jpg (98.77 kB . 750x593 - viewed 10299 times)

Photographer: Loren Ann Stiles
Summary Author: Loren Ann Stiles

The hard drought in Texas this summer has taken its toll; crops are shriveled, rivers are drying up and even cacti are showing stress. But droughts such as this offer a rare glimpse of an extensive collection of dinosaur tracks at the Dinosaur Valley State Park near Glen Rose, Texas. Normally covered in water, the tracks of sauropods and theropods are for the time being exposed in the limestone bed of the Paluxy River. This small sauropod print is approximately 12 in (30 cm) across. The setting for this park was formed by sediment deposited more than 100 million years ago along rivers that once flowed into an ancient sea. Over perhaps the last 1 million years, the layered sediment has been gradually worn away revealing the long ago submerged footprints. Photo taken on August 2, 2011.

[neilep]

In the Shadow of Saturn


2011-09-04_190058.jpg (55.85 kB . 894x594 - viewed 10696 times)

Image Credit: Cassini Imaging Team, SSI, JPL, ESA, NASA


BIGGY PICCY HERE

 In the shadow of Saturn, unexpected wonders appear. The robotic Cassini spacecraft now orbiting Saturn drifted in giant planet's shadow for about 12 hours in 2006 and looked back toward the eclipsed Sun. Cassini saw a view unlike any other. First, the night side of Saturn is seen to be partly lit by light reflected from its own majestic ring system. Next, the rings themselves appear dark when silhouetted against Saturn, but quite bright when viewed away from Saturn, slightly scattering sunlight, in this exaggerated color image. Saturn's rings light up so much that new rings were discovered, although they are hard to see in the image. Seen in spectacular detail, however, is Saturn's E ring, the ring created by the newly discovered ice-fountains of the moon Enceladus and the outermost ring visible above. Far in the distance, at the left, just above the bright main rings, is the almost ignorable pale blue dot of Earth.

[neilep]

Great Orion Nebulae







Image Credit & Copyright: Jesús Vargas (Astrogades) & Maritxu Poyal (Maritxu)

BIGGY PICCY HERE

 The Great Nebula in Orion, also known as M42, is one of the most famous nebulas in the sky. The star forming region's glowing gas clouds and hot young stars are on the right in this sharp and colorful image that includes the smaller nebula M43 near center and dusty, bluish reflection nebulae NGC 1977 and friends on the left. Located at the edge of an otherwise invisible giant molecular cloud complex, these eye-catching nebulae represent only a small fraction of this galactic neighborhood's wealth of interstellar material. Within the well-studied stellar nursery, astronomers have also identified what appear to be numerous infant planetary systems. The gorgeous skyscape spans nearly two degrees or about 45 light-years at the Orion Nebula's estimated distance of 1,500 light-years.

[neilep]

Undulatus Asperatus Clouds



Photographer: Luis Argerich;
Summary Author: Luis Argerich; Jim Foster



The photo above shows unusual looking clouds looming over a lagoon near Lobos, Argentina. This formation appeared, oddly enough, following a morning storm. The clouds are referred to as undulatus asperatus, a recently introduced cloud designation (2009). These roughened wave clouds may be related to a type of altostratus cloud -- altostratus undulatus. It seems that Undulatus asperatus have a predisposition to form before midday, over relatively flat terrain and after convective storms have passed by. Though these intriguing clouds made the sky look especially threatening, no precipitation or strong winds ensued. They persisted for several hours before finally dissipating.

[neilep]

Cloudy Night of the Northern Lights

AuroraCorona_FredrikBroms_27sep2011_APOD900.jpg (126.74 kB . 738x643 - viewed 10484 times)

Image Credit & Copyright: Fredrick Broms (Northern Lights Photography)

BIGGY PICCY HERE



 On September 26, a large solar coronal mass ejection smacked into planet Earth's magnetosphere producing a severe geomagnetic storm and wide spread auroras. Captured here near local midnight from Kvaløya island outside Tromsø in northern Norway, the intense auroral glow was framed by parting rain clouds. Tinted orange, the clouds are also in silhouette as the tops of the colorful shimmering curtains of northern lights extend well over 100 kilometers above the ground. Though the auroral rays are parallel, perspective makes them appear to radiate from a vanishing point at the zenith. Near the bottom of the scene, an even more distant Pleiades star cluster and bright planet Jupiter shine on this cloudy northern night.

[neilep]

NGC 7635: The Bubble Nebula


bubble_vanvleet_900.jpg (126.72 kB . 900x700 - viewed 10100 times)



Image Credit & Copyright: Larry Van Vleet


It's the bubble versus the cloud. NGC 7635, the Bubble Nebula, is being pushed out by the stellar wind of massive central star BD+602522. Next door, though, lives a giant molecular cloud, visible to the right. At this place in space, an irresistible force meets an immovable object in an interesting way. The cloud is able to contain the expansion of the bubble gas, but gets blasted by the hot radiation from the bubble's central star. The radiation heats up dense regions of the molecular cloud causing it to glow. The Bubble Nebula, pictured above in scientifically mapped colors to bring up contrast, is about 10 light-years across and part of a much larger complex of stars and shells. The Bubble Nebula can be seen with a small telescope towards the constellation of the Queen of Aethiopia (Cassiopeia)

[neilep]

Jupiter's Clouds from New Horizons



Image Credit: NASA, Johns Hopkins U. APL, SWRI






The New Horizons spacecraft took some stunning images of Jupiter on its way out to Pluto. Famous for its Great Red Spot, Jupiter is also known for its regular, equatorial cloud bands, visible through even modest sized telescopes. The above image, horizontally compressed, was taken in 2007 near Jupiter's terminator and shows the Jovian giant's wide diversity of cloud patterns. On the far left are clouds closest to Jupiter's South Pole. Here turbulent whirlpools and swirls are seen in a dark region, dubbed a belt, that rings the planet. Even light colored regions, called zones, show tremendous structure, complete with complex wave patterns. The energy that drives these waves surely comes from below. New Horizons is the fastest space probe ever launched, has now passed the orbits of Saturn and Uranus and is on track to reach Pluto in 2015.