What did you see in the sky tonight?

[geckzilla]

My favorite video of gregarious harvestmen. Turn the audio on.
https://vine.co/v/h9PBY0Z2DIz

(This post seems pretty odd on the new page. OH WELL.)

[BDanielMayfield]

Is that your toupee sir?

No, those are my pet spiders, trying to stay warm.

[Nitpicker]

Chris, a funnel web's fangs can penetrate fingernails and could easily penetrate parts of that hazmat suit. At best, it might serve as a convenient body bag, in which to sweat away one's last few moments.

That isn't a hazmat suit. It's an Aussie tourist suit, made of Kevlar. That's a requirement to make it crocodile proof.

Oh, my mistake. It probably shields radiation too. Just the thing for swimming in the mutant crocodile infested tailings* of our uranium mines. But you'd still have to worry about the fashion police.

*possible exaggeration.

[Beyond]

(This post seems pretty odd on the new page. OH WELL.)

That's because there aren't any pea-green spacesuits or spiders on this page. (YET!)

[Ann]

Nitpicker wrote:
As for the insecticide claim, this story comes from my early childhood in the late 1970s, before the antivenom was developed. One morning, I was innocently munching away at my breakfast cereal, when I saw a funnel web approaching me from across the other side of the room, slowly, but steadily and with purpose. I put down my bowl. By pure chance, there happened to be a can of insecticide (of some sort, details have been lost) on the table next to me. I started spraying the stuff at the spider, but it continued to walk towards me, backing me into a corner, with no change in its gait. By the time my back was up against the wall, the spider was white with spray, and the can gave out. At this point, the spider began to rear up in classic strike pose, and I took the empty can and squashed it dead. This is just one of the funnel web stories that has so obviously traumatised me. The rational reality is that very few people get bitten by funnel webs and none have died since the antivenom was developed.

I've always thought that the fear of spiders is exaggerated, but... you've convinced me, Nitpicker.

Ann

[Nitpicker]

Nitpicker wrote:
As for the insecticide claim, this story comes from my early childhood in the late 1970s, before the antivenom was developed. One morning, I was innocently munching away at my breakfast cereal, when I saw a funnel web approaching me from across the other side of the room, slowly, but steadily and with purpose. I put down my bowl. By pure chance, there happened to be a can of insecticide (of some sort, details have been lost) on the table next to me. I started spraying the stuff at the spider, but it continued to walk towards me, backing me into a corner, with no change in its gait. By the time my back was up against the wall, the spider was white with spray, and the can gave out. At this point, the spider began to rear up in classic strike pose, and I took the empty can and squashed it dead. This is just one of the funnel web stories that has so obviously traumatised me. The rational reality is that very few people get bitten by funnel webs and none have died since the antivenom was developed.

I've always thought that the fear of spiders is exaggerated, but... you've convinced me, Nitpicker.

Ann

Well, it may have been the early 1980s (after the antivenom was available) and it may not have been a full spray can. Apparently you have to "milk" funnel webs 70 times to produce one dose of antivenom.

[owlice]

I'm assuming feral koalas would be unlikely to bite me while I'm sleeping. Plus, they are four-legged, furry and cute! Not so with spiders.

A friend of mine was in Florida, at the airport awaiting her flight out, when she became suddenly violently ill. Paramedics were called (really handsome hunky guys [when paramedics were called for me in Florida one time, they, too, were really handsome hunky guys; I think this must be standard in Florida, and kindly don't mess with this notion of mine -- let me dream, okay?]; she found that "You're standing on my barf bag" is not a good pickup line, BTW), she was taken to the hospital, spent another night or two in Florida, and then flew to Chicago for work meetings (she's based in DC) when she felt better. About ten days later, she was home, I was visiting her, and she said something about a huge bruise on her leg. Huge indeed: from the knee up, the entire back of her leg and wrapping partway around to the front. In the middle of it, which she couldn't see, was a tiny puncture wound... a spider bite. She'd seen a spider in the bed and had killed it, dismantled the bedclothes and remade the bed (because that's what people do when they find a spider in their bed) before going back to sleep, but had never connected her illness and the gigantic bruise with the spider.

I got bitten by a spider when I was outside in October; it took months for the redness to go away, and I still have a little red mark where I was bitten. This wasn't even one of our venomous spiders (most of which are only mildly venomous)!

I did not click on any of the YouTubes that [apparently] have spiders in them. Daddy Long Legs don't generally bother me, though I don't want to see tons of them at one time, thank you very much.

[neufer]

Nuts about spiders?

[geckzilla]

Nuts about spiders?

Classic thread.

[Chris Peterson]

Nuts about spiders?

Classic thread.

Classic thread strand.

[owlice]

Nuts about spiders?

Classic thread.

Classic thread strand.

Unopened strand thread whatever.

[geckzilla]

Message from your past self to your future self from that thread:

Eeeeekkk! I don't like spiders (though will leave them alone outside and when they are inside, regret not having a spouse to dispatch them for me!) nor ticks, regret opening this thread, and won't do so again! Eek! Eewww! Eeeekkk!!!

[owlice]

And I haven't opened it since!

[BMAONE23]

As for the insecticide claim, this story comes from my early childhood in the late 1970s, before the antivenom was developed. One morning, I was innocently munching away at my breakfast cereal, when I saw a funnel web approachse. I put down my bowl. By pure chance, there happened to be a can of insecticide (of some sort, details have been lost) on the table next to me. I started spraying the stuff at the spider, but it continued to walk towards me, backing me into a corner, with no change in its gait. By the time my back was up against the wall, the spider was white with spray, and the can gave out. At this point, the spider began to rear up in classic strike pose, and I took the empty can and squashed it dead. This is just one of the funnel web stories that has so obviously traumatised me. The rational reality is that very few people get bitten by funnel webs and none have died since the antivenom was developed.

Sounds like you did discover how a can of insecticide could be utilized to eliminate that menace though

[Nitpicker]

I'm assuming feral koalas would be unlikely to bite me while I'm sleeping. Plus, they are four-legged, furry and cute! Not so with spiders.

I wouldn't recommend holding/cuddling a koala (feral or otherwise), despite the fact that many zoos offer it as an experience. Almost every tourist I've seen cuddling a koala has been peed on. If you must do it, make sure they have some gum leaves to eat: this will keep them placid enough to not scratch or bite. I hope you enjoy Australia. Seeing a koala in the wild is quite special. Hearing them mating at night becomes less special over time, however uncommon. They make quite noisy grunts and keep you awake.

I don't like spiders (though will leave them alone outside and when they are inside, regret not having a spouse to dispatch them for me!)

I know what you mean. My wife normally dispatches the (harmless but big and fast) huntsman spiders we commonly find inside here. I haven't seen a funnel web spider since I moved away from the area I grew up in (I moved away for other reasons). But I really must stop walking barefoot out into the garden at night, especially after rain. That is when you are most likely to disturb a wandering male funnel web. Dangerous hobby, astronomy.

[rstevenson]

If I ever manage to visit Australia (and it's number 2 on my list) I'll be sure to be suitably shod ...

... as opposed to my normal footwear, which would best be described as shoddy.

Rob

[bystander]

I thought Uggs were required footwear down under.

[Nitpicker]

I thought Uggs were required footwear down under.

Perhaps, but I don't move in such sophisticated circles.

[Chris Peterson]

Super transparent skies in front of a quick cold front. This view to the east easily captures the faint winter Milky Way between Orion and Jupiter. This is a 30-second exposure, so there's a hint of star motion.

[geckzilla]

Barnard's Loop is also just barely discernible.

[neufer]

Barnard's Loop is also just barely discernible.

Have you been into the pisco sours again?

[geckzilla]

Man, what is up with you and the pisco sours today? A Peruvian friend got me to taste that once but I can't get over the medicinal flavor of alcohol. I don't ever drink except when urged by someone that "it's not that bad" and then I taste it and let them know that yes, it actually is that bad.

[Chris Peterson]

Barnard's Loop is also just barely discernible.

Yes, that surprised me for such a short exposure. It's more apparent when I have the image open in Photoshop and push the curves a bit beyond what would make for an aesthetic treatment.

[Nitpicker]

That's beautiful Chris. I took a photo with a similar FOV a month ago, looking northwards, and into a darker sky than I am normally accustomed to. I was quite happy with my result, until I saw yours, so I'm showing mine here purely for a stark comparison of sky darkness. Admittedly, mine was only an 8 second exposure, but still, where is the Milky Way?

Taurus, Orion with Sirius & Procyon, Jupiter rising in Gemini.

[Ann]

Fantastic image Chris, and talk about dark skies. But Nitpicker, yours is great, too. The color difference between the Hyades and the Pleiades is subtle but absolutely lovely. For an 8 second exposure, surely that is wonderful.

(Although, in a fit of hemisphere chauvinism, I felt tempted to exclaim: Hey, the sky is all upside down!!!)

Ann