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Aurora Borealis

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Over the past week, auroras have danced in the sky, with visibility as far south in the US as Texas and New Mexico. We have had excellent viewing opportunities in the dark skies of the North Carolina Blue Ridge Mountains. Indigenous societies  have interpreted these sky-lights in various ways. But what do modern scientists say? Solar Cycle 25 is  approaching Solar Maximum , a period in the approximate 11-year cycle when we will see intense, stormy Sun activity. Once the maximum is reached, the north and south magnetic fields of our star will flip, and the Sun’s activity will gradually slow to a “solar minimum.” The  Space Weather Prediction Center , a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations (NOAA) branch, actively tracks the science behind solar events. Daily information regarding the number and intensity of solar flares, coronal mass ejections (CME), and the aurora forecast is available at the above link: you can click on the individual areas and watch their progression. Trad
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I'm Back

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Greetings readers! Much has happened since my last blog on September 23rd. First, Hurricane Helene struck Florida, then traveled northward, continuing through Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, and  western North Carolina . The precursor rains in the Carolinas and Tennessee precipitated havoc when Helene arrived by the  “brown-ocean effect.” We were fortunate to live just east of Boone, NC, where the major storm had reached. We had over 11.62 inches of rain in 24 hours, but here at our home’s mountaintop location, there was no flooding. Our community egress road exits onto a small country road that travels along a “run” (Appalachian word for creek) before it reaches Rt 421. The run flooded that road and its bridge. Thanks to our community leaders’ foresight, we have a secondary emergency exit directly onto Rt 421, so we were not trapped. Winds brought down many trees, and then trees continued to fall due to oversaturated ground and pine’s shallow roots. A small landslide dislodged a s
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Dark Sky

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Last week’s focus was bright sky objects. I’m going to flip the switch to dark sky. Birds have begun their annual southward migration. In fact, we are already in the midst of the Full Fall Migration Period: August 15 — November 30, 2024. During this period,  light pollution is deadly to birds . We can ameliorate the danger by taking several actions. The first is “ Lights Out ” during critical migration periods. BirdCast  is a fascinating website which allows us to see the predicted bird migration over our location. You can type in the local zip code and see live alerts. In addition to looking out into my yard at night, how do I know how dark my personal region is? I’m fortunate to live in a relatively dark(er) sky area near the Blue Ridge Parkway of North Carolina. The red and pink regions are bright skies. According to the world  light pollution map , the eastern half and the Western Coastal areas of the US have the worst light pollution. This blog holds critical information regarding
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Tuesday's Trifecta

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  Tomorrow evening, our satellite moon will provide a celestial treat. The lunar trifecta will include a supermoon, a partial lunar eclipse, and a blood moon. A  supermoon  is defined when the moon’s orbit is within 90% of its closest point to Earth ( perigee ), per astrologer Richard Nolle. The term applies to both new and full moons, but since we can’t see new moons, we turn our attention to the full moon supermoons. A  lunar eclipse  occurs when the Earth is between the sun and a full moon, and the moon passes through the Earth’s shadow.  According to NASA , the peak lunar eclipse will occur tomorrow, September 17, at 10:44 EDT (02:44 UT). The upcoming eclipse will only be partial: only the upper part of the moon (top 8%) hidden behind the  umbra  (the darkest portion of the Earth’s shadow). A  blood moon  is noted when the planet’s  penumbra  (the lighter area of the Earth’s shadow) gives the visible portion of the lunar disk a reddish-brown cast. Native peoples, religious groups,
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Cusp of Fall

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The nights are progressively cooler; a quilt feels cuddly. Indian summer lies ahead, but for the moment, we are on the cusp of fall, the precipice of winter. The garden has waned. The beans no longer produce green and golden pods; a couple of small cucumbers struggle, and the Sugar Baby Watermelon vines promise only a few more sweet treats. Dill and marigolds still brighten the raised beds filled with withering plants. We’ve enjoyed a prolific zucchini and summer squash crop this summer. A neighbor shared a delicious Summer Squash Gingerbread Loaf recipe. I cheated a bit by blending in both summer squash and zucchini, but the results were tasty, if not foreboding, of the pumpkin spice onslaught ahead. Mums dot the yard with their colorful buttons. As the landscape outside begins to brown, I’ve brought more cheer inside with a bouquet of stunning dahlias from the farmers’ market. True fall is less than two weeks away, on September 22, the 2024 Autumnal Equinox. While it seems I just set
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Opportunity

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Opportunity  may appear in different guises: overt or covert. The initial impression of the situation may seem like too much work to undertake. Author success means many hours at the keyboard. A pessimist may avoid a situation because it looks too challenging to overcome, while an optimist may charge headlong into the fray because they see a promising outcome ahead. If you take the time to prepare for excellence in your chosen field, you can lay the groundwork for success. When a golden opportunity presents itself, you will be ready to accept the challenge. Opportunity dances with those already on the dance floor.  ~ H. Jackson Brown, Jr. You don’t know if you can succeed if you don’t try. Have you grasped at a possible opportunity or let one get away? You can follow the Author on her  Website  or  X  (formerly Twitter).
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Adversity

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Life has its good and bad moments, some rougher than others, but how we deal with the hard times molds us into better images of ourselves. How we cope  with setbacks, misfortune, and hardships varies from person to person. Not facing a dire situation in the short term may impact our mental health in the long term. Individuals mired in poverty and despair may rise above the muck by pursuing intensive studies, elevating their social and economic status. J.D. Vance outlines his upbringing and emergence in  Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis . If there were no night, we would not appreciate the day, nor could we see the stars and the vastness of the heavens. We must partake of the bitter with the sweet. There is a divine purpose in the adversities we encounter every day. They prepare, they purge, they purify, and thus they bless. ~ James E. Faust Have you encountered difficult periods in your lifetime? How have you managed those situations: head-on or head in the s
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