Starting Today: Arrive Early

January 6, 2012

Arrive Early

It's interesting that often times the most glorious part of a sunrise comes well before it actually passes over the horizon...

The sky will be aflame with deep reds and purples a good half hour before the rise, and then slowly fade through a series of oranges as daylight approaches. As you watch you are almost unaware of the transformation until suddenly you awake from your reverie and realize...

...Oh...everything has turned yellow...

...and then you see the sun...

3 comments:

jglmnkJanuary 6, 2012 at 12:46 PM
I was hoping you'd have some beautiful pictures today! I had a 7:45 lesson and I thought it looked pretty clear out there. Thanks for sharing!
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Iffer MitchellJanuary 6, 2012 at 1:02 PM
...and then you see the sun. Kind of deep. I mean that sincerely not jokingly.
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AnonymousJanuary 12, 2012 at 7:50 AM
That first one is stunning. The colors are so intense that it looks like it was manipulated.
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Great Books I've Recently Read

If you are looking for an "astronomical" read, Tyler Nordgren's "Stars Above, Earth Below" Is a great place to start. Nordgren explores a wide array of astronomical subjects by relating them to the processes, landscapes, history, culture, and dark skies that are so beautifully on display in our National Parks: solar system volcanism alongside Yellowstone National Park; Cosmology, Deep Time, and Deep Space alongside the Grand Canyon; Climate Change and the "Goldilocks Zone" alongside Glacier National Park; the life cycles of stars, and archeoastronomy alongside Chaco Canyon...and many more. The book is loaded with beautiful images and illustrations, and Nordgren's conversational storytelling makes complex ideas both accessible and memorable. The ideas in this book have enriched my own experience of observing, and I recommend it to others with two big thumbs up!

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A beautifully written book that illuminates one of the most quietly pressing issues of our time: the slow advancement of light pollution into our night sky. True darkness, and the natural light it permits, has been a source of inspiration for creative thinkers throughout history. It is crucial to our physical and mental health, personal safety, and continuing connection to the world around us. Its gradual disappearance behind a fog of orange skyglow is a tragedy that many around the world are working hard to prevent. Provocative, subtle, practical, and poetic, "The End of Night" reminds us that we need not fear the dark, but should instead embrace and protect its wonders so that future generations will still know first-hand the arc of the Milky Way sweeping across a deep sky.

I love and hate anthologies. The great thing about them is I come away having met a new bunch of inspiring writers. The unfortunate thing is that I know I'll never get to everything on my growing list of "must read" books. This collection is magnificent, with selections both poetic and practical, sobering and celebratory. And Lyon's introductory analysis of America's particular contribution to the oft overlooked and sometimes maligned genre of nature writing provides an illuminating perspective on the art, while also tying it to society's evolving perspective on nature and humanity's role within it. A few of my favorite features included selections by Barry Lopez, John Haines, Edward Hoagland, Rachel Carson, and Henry Beston.

A collection of essays and poetry by prominent western writers that illuminates the role of wilderness--and in this case, most specifically Utah wilderness--in sustaining an ethic of freedom, creativity, aspiration, and soulful bounty: "as the control plots against which we can measure the ravages of Progress." Its distribution in 1996 among members of congress and other top political figures, helped secure the creation of the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument. The selections are varied and heartfelt. They approach the issues of wilderness from unexpected perspectives, and invite the reader into landscapes of mythic dimension. "Carry water and use your wits."

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Starting Today

January 6, 2012

Arrive Early

3 comments:

Black River Astronomical Society

Salt Lake Astronomical Society

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