What did you see in the sky tonight?

Beyond · Post by **Beyond** » Tue Apr 17, 2012 3:41 am

At just about 11:30pm, a nice white meteor about twice the size that venus looks, traveling about ese to wnw and leaving a bit of a white trail behind it as it went. I noticed it starting just after the 12:00 position to almost the 3:00 position. It was going a bit slower than i usually see them. Nice!

Indigo_Sunrise · Post by **Indigo_Sunrise** » Wed Apr 18, 2012 4:07 pm

Beyond wrote:I saw nuthin' last night, it was cloudy. However, at daybreak, just before the sun was visible through the trees in the east, i saw a rainbow in the west. It was sprinkling gently outside, just enough to form a pinkish bow. The south side had just a hint of green and was a double bow. Also, about a fist at arms length to the east another pinkish bow was starting. I don't recall ever seeing a rainbow in the west before. They've always happened in the east, or almost overhead, in the late afternoon as the rain would be ending and the sun going down. It only lasted about five minutes, so i'm glad i caught it. My first sunrise rainbow.

Beyond,
I'm pretty certain that rainbows caused by the sun are just about opposite of it. I would be interested in hearing the conditions that allowed you to see one almost overhead.

And at least you're getting rain enough to be able to see a rainbow. We haven't had rain here - until today, anyway - in close to a month. And though it'll interfere with skygazing, I hope we get a few days of it!

Beyond · Post by **Beyond** » Thu Apr 19, 2012 1:17 am

Hey there Indigo_Sunrise.

2-things.
1)--The (1) almost over head rainbow that i saw, was sometime -after- the sun had set, so it was much higher in the sky than i normally see them.

2)-- The rain we've been getting lately is very light. That's why we have Red Flag warnings, and also pinkish rainbows. Just not enough water.

owlice · Post by **owlice** » Thu Apr 19, 2012 11:54 am

A couple of days ago, I saw a lot of early morning lights as I walked along 17th Street in downtown DC; one of the lights was even in the sky. (Not a good photo, but it's all I've got.)

: Click to view larger image

geckzilla · Post by **geckzilla** » Thu Apr 19, 2012 12:08 pm

The original night light!

Beyond · Post by **Beyond** » Thu Apr 19, 2012 12:36 pm

ha-ha, missed it at first, thought it was a street light, until i noticed that the 'light' didn't quite line up with the stem. Pretty good for a onewinged owl

orin stepanek · Post by **orin stepanek** » Thu Apr 19, 2012 12:46 pm

Just clouds in the sky overnight! The forecast is for a cool day! Maybe we might get a little rain!

Chris Peterson · Post by **Chris Peterson** » Mon Apr 23, 2012 1:03 am

Some Lyrid meteors. It's a weak shower, but with no Moon and perfectly clear weather, we couldn't miss. My camera caught 27 of them, including a few nice fireballs. You can see some videos on my 2012 Lyrid report. The image at the left is a composite of all 27.

Orca · Post by **Orca** » Tue Apr 24, 2012 5:32 am

Normally I don't pay attention to the Lyrids; the odds we'll have clear skies this time of year are slim-to-none.

This weekend the weather was warm and skies clear - beautiful spring weather. I stayed up Sunday night until after midnight hoping to catch a few meteors. Unfortunately when I went outside I quickly realized the sky was completely overcast! The change had occurred in just a few hours. Needless to say, I don't live in part of the world with particularly good viewing. Weather in the NW is like a box of chocolates...

owlice · Post by **owlice** » Tue Apr 24, 2012 10:41 am

It's been raining here (snowing west and north, up to 6" in some places), so no Lyrids for me. Hard to lament when we need the rain so badly.

Moonlady · Post by **Moonlady** » Wed May 23, 2012 9:40 am

Clear sky at midnight, beautiful twinkling stars and a meteor with a long trail, I waited looking up till my neck hurt.

Beyond · Post by **Beyond** » Thu May 24, 2012 4:59 am

I just saw a -ghost of superman- meteor going from west to east at about the 2:00 position. It just skimmed the atmosphere just enough to produce a ghostly streak 2+ moon widths long. It was going so fast, that if i had blinked, i would have missed it. It gave me the impression that if it had come in lower, it would have been a really good sized one. Well, maybe next time.

Ann · Post by **Ann** » Thu May 24, 2012 5:10 am

A "ghost of Superman" meteor!

Nice!

(Did you wave at him?)

Ann

Beyond · Post by **Beyond** » Thu May 24, 2012 5:43 am

No time

It was faster than a speeding bullit

Ann · Post by **Ann** » Thu Jun 14, 2012 1:08 am

I went to bed at about 7.30 last night, because I was getting up early, but I woke up at around midnight and couldn't fall asleep again. I decided to check my kitchen window just in case there were noctilucent clouds out there - this is the right time of year for noctilucent clouds, and it was definitely the right time of the night for this beautiful sky show.

And there were indeed noctilucent clouds out there! Bright and brilliant! They looked much like they do in the picture at left, which was taken by P-M Hedén.

Ann

Sam · Post by **Sam** » Sat Jul 21, 2012 3:20 am

Noctilucent clouds, I think! And a lot of bats.
The clouds were nothing like P-M Hedén's above, since I'm in the middle of two large cities and their fully-lit stadiums, and it's my first time seeing them so I'm not even sure, but they did have that blueness so different from typical light pollution. Had I planned ahead I could have tried for a shot with them and the Minneapolis skyline--next time.

--
Sam

Ann · Post by **Ann** » Mon Jul 23, 2012 8:39 pm

Looking out of my kitchen window at the slowly deepening summer dusk, I saw Capella twinkle ever so gently over the rooftops in the north.

Click to play embedded YouTube video.

Twinkle, twinkle, little star, how I wonder what you are! In Swedish we say "How I wonder where you are!"

Well, these days we know both what and where Capella is. I like it!

Ann

Moonlady · Post by **Moonlady** » Wed Jul 25, 2012 3:28 am

so sweet Ann, Owlice sings with a twinkling star ♥

Yesterday early morning I saw Jupiter and Venus rising.

This early morning I got up again at 4 o'clock to enjoy the rise of them! I knew the weather would be great, clear blue sky.
While watching the lovely scene, the ISS flew over Germany from southwest to northeast, that was a surprise!
While I was leaning out of my window, a big bat flew in front of my nose taking a sharp curve and I felt it's wings wind

I tried if my cell phone could take a picture of the planets, that's the result.

In the picture there is a purple light on the hill, there is a medieval tower with a purple light symbol.

owlice · Post by **owlice** » Wed Jul 25, 2012 8:32 am

Moonlady wrote:Owlice sings with a twinkling star ♥

Oh, no, she doesn't! I may not have a great voice, but I'm pretty sure I don't sound like that!

I saw a lovely sunset, with gauzy clouds tinted a soft pink drifting over the crescent moon and the sky an amazing shade of intense blue.

bystander · Post by **bystander** » Wed Jul 25, 2012 3:14 pm

Moonlady wrote:Owlice sings with a twinkling star

Listening to stars twinkle

Ann · Post by **Ann** » Thu Jul 26, 2012 6:11 am

Paragliders without(?) engines.
Source: http://www.paragliding-tales-and-review ... iders.html

I saw the waxing Moon, plus three "engine-powered" paragliders sailing by high in the sky like a trio of helicopters, or like the kids cycling in the sky in the movie E.T.

This morning I read that a Swedish paraglider had collided with a flagpole in Denmark!

Ouch!

Ann

Moonlady · Post by **Moonlady** » Thu Jul 26, 2012 12:02 pm

This morning I read that a Swedish paraglider had collided with a flagpole in Denmark! Ouch!

Ann

Did the paragliders wanted to escape in the safety of the dark from a dictatorship in Sweden to Denmark?

There are many escape experiences from former DDR to West Germany, they tried all kind of techniques, some succesful some not.

Beyond · Post by **Beyond** » Thu Jul 26, 2012 12:25 pm

Paraglideing = How to protest the Law of Gravity quietly.

TNT · Post by **TNT** » Fri Jul 27, 2012 12:06 am

Beyod wrote:Paraglideing = How to protest the Law of Gravity quietly.

Space: You never have enough of it in your closet!

Moonlady · Post by **Moonlady** » Fri Jul 27, 2012 2:51 am

Up again to watch Jupiter and Venus rising and the bonus of ISS! Sharp at 04:15 o'clock.
But this time there was a satellite in the trail of ISS, I thought usually satellites orbit from north to south,
which I observed in the past many, and if its from west to east, it's rare and they are spy/ military satellites

Ann, can you spot ISS from your local position? I don't know how far it can be seen when the ISS flies over Germany, it's flying in my view through the zenith.

Next nights/ early mornings it's again about quarter past four, if you like to spot it, but be fast, when I saw it in the internet flying at the border of France
towards Germany it was already at my sight not a full minute after!

I waved at the ISS, but I think they are not interested to zoom to me, lol

Starship Asterisk*

What did you see in the sky tonight?

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Bright and brilliant!

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