Starship Asterisk*

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firefly wrote:

Mike Rosinski's unique courtship flash pattern

<<Lampyridae is a family of insects in the beetle order Coleoptera. They are winged beetles, and commonly called fireflies or lightning bugs for their conspicuous crepuscular use of bioluminescence to attract mates or prey. Fireflies produce a "cold light", with no infrared or ultraviolet frequencies. This chemically produced light from the lower abdomen may be yellow, green, or pale-red, with wavelengths from 510 to 670 nanometers. Fireflies are a classic example of an organism that uses bioluminescence for sexual selection. They have evolved a variety of ways to communicate with mates in courtships: steady glows, flashing, as well as the use of chemical signals unrelated to photic systems. Some species are distinguished by the unique courtship flash patterns emitted by flying males in search of females. In general, females of the Photinus genus do not fly, but do give a flash response to males of their own species.

Tropical fireflies, in particular, in Southeast Asia, routinely synchronise their flashes among large groups. This phenomenon is explained as phase synchronization and spontaneous order. In the United States, one of the most famous sightings of fireflies blinking in unison occurs annually near Elkmont, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains during the first weeks of June.

Female Photuris fireflies are known for mimicking the mating flashes of other "lightning bugs" for the sole purpose of predation. Target males are attracted to what appears to be a suitable mate, and are then eaten. For this reason the Photuris species are sometimes referred to as "femme fatale fireflies."

There are 2,000 species of firefly found in temperate and tropical environments. Many are in marshes or in wet, wooded areas where their larvae have abundant sources of food. These larvae emit light and are often called "glowworms", in particular, in Eurasia. In the Americas, "glow worm" also refers to the related Phengodidae. In many species, both male and female fireflies have the ability to fly, but in some species females are flightless.

A few days after mating, a female lays her fertilized eggs on or just below the surface of the ground. The eggs hatch 3–4 weeks later and the larvae feed until the end of the summer. The larvae are commonly called glowworms, not to be confused with the distinct beetle family Phengodidae or fly genus Arachnocampa. Lampyrid larvae have simple eyes. The term glowworm is also used for both adults and larvae of species such as Lampyris noctiluca, the common European glowworm, in which only the non-flying adult females glow brightly and the flying males glow only weakly and intermittently.

Fireflies hibernate over winter during the larval stage, some species for several years. Some do this by burrowing underground, while others find places on or under the bark of trees. They emerge in the spring. After several weeks of feeding, they pupate for 1 to 2.5 weeks and emerge as adults. The larvae of most species are specialized predators and feed on other larvae, terrestrial snails, and slugs. One such species is Alecton discoidalis which is found in Cuba. Some are so specialized that they have grooved mandibles that deliver digestive fluids directly to their prey. Adult diet varies. Some are predatory, while others feed on plant pollen or nectar.

Most fireflies are quite distasteful and sometimes poisonous to vertebrate predators. This is due at least in part to a group of steroid pyrones known as lucibufagins (LBGs), which are similar to cardiotonic bufadienolides found in some poisonous toads. All fireflies glow as larvae. Bioluminescence serves a different function in lampyrid larvae than it does in adults. It appears to be a warning signal to predators, since many firefly larvae contain chemicals that are distasteful or toxic.

Light production in fireflies is due to a type of chemical reaction called bioluminescence. This process occurs in specialised light-emitting organs, usually on a firefly's lower abdomen. The enzyme luciferase acts on the luciferin, in the presence of magnesium ions, ATP, and oxygen to produce light. Genes coding for these substances have been inserted into many different organisms. Firefly luciferase is used in forensics, and the enzyme has medical uses — in particular, for detecting the presence of ATP or magnesium. It has been speculated that Baroque painter Caravaggio may have prepared his canvases with a powder of dried fireflies to create a photosensitive surface on which he projected the image to be painted.>>

Ray-Optics wrote:
Interesting to note that not a single one of the firefly trails is convex upward.
They all seem to flash as they're pulling out of a dive.

Chicolini wrote:
These are the kind of pictures that make APOD great. Its just a shame all the expensive other NASA stuff had to spend all the American money (now Juno probe ... whatever ... piggies in their trough ) and rob so many families and kids of their tax dollars needed to enjoy nights filled with fireflies like there.

biddie67 wrote:

It seems as though the Earth vis-a-vie the stars has a greater predictable pattern of movement than those delightful fireflies; but don't tell the flyflies that - their sense of ordered movement just isn't as obvious to us mere humans ....

nstahl wrote:I hope y'all watched the Juno launch like I just did and are looking forward to a bunch of fine Jupiter APODs in five years.

Lemniscate wrote:The short interruption near the end of the star trails, where does that come from? I don't see it in the stacked timelapse video.

Lemniscate wrote:The short interruption near the end of the star trails, where does that come from? I don't see it in the stacked timelapse video.

mtbdudex wrote:Thx everyone for nice messages.

btw, 100% of the credit for originating this shot goes to my wife.
My wife commented to me “the fireflies are really active tonight, why don’t you try and get some in a photo”….I looked outside and it was a hot/warm/humid evening and she was right.

I can take credit for capturing the startrails/fireflies, now the rising moon reflection in the garage 2 windows…that was totally luck, and for astrophoto people that made the shot – and why it got posted to APOD

...

Prior to NASA posting my image they informed me it was chosen late last night.
I sent them this response (to jerry bonnell, NASA guy ):
I'm sure you've heard this before, but please pass this on:

You guys/gals at NASA inspire all of us in the public with your continued excellence in all Space Endeavors.
Never, never, never underestimate the positive impact on so many lives, including my 3 young children (9, 7, 5).
We all need to continually dream, and NASA fuels that for so many of us.

regards,
Mike Rosinski

Ann wrote:Yes, well - many of the stars we can see in the sky follow their own paths, away from the midplane of the Milky Way. Like Arcturus. (Is Arcturus in the picture? Beats me, because I'm horribly bad at identifying stars from star trails.)