City Lights

City Lights
By neatonjr


Twinkle ...
Copyright Jamal Alayoubi, 2008

Although I enjoy spending time in the countryside, I'm a city boy at heart. I enjoy too many of the amenities conveniently available only in the city... a wide variety of restaurants, the symphony, major museums, etc. That said, there is one thing I don't like about living in town - I've watched the night sky from my backyard disappear over the last 20 odd years.

Our youngest sons are just about to turn 24. When they were small, we could sit in the backyard and clearly see the Milky Way rising up from the southern horizon and crossing overhead. I can't see it at all now and haven't been able to for probably 10 years or more.


While I can still enjoy observing from my own yard, the best targets are obviously the moon and planets... dim fuzzies are just too dim. As an example of the night-time illumination in my area, see the photo City Lights to the right. No, that wasn't taken during daylight. Look closely and you'll notice some faint star trails and even Polaris just to left of center. That shot was taken around midnight under clear skies; the exposure was 30 minutes at F/11 and ISO 200. Compare it to Twinkle ..., taken by Jamal Alayoubi in the Swiss countryside northeast of Lake Geneva. His exposure was almost 4 times as long at F/5 and ISO 500.


One of the most dramatic examples of just how bad light pollution has gotten in certain areas is the light pollution maps at The Night Sky in the World. To see how severe the problem has gotten in my hometown, check out this light pollution map for Dallas, Texas provided by cleardarksky.com. Mesquite is about half-way between the center of the image and the right side. Ouch!



While it is a shame to lose the connection our ancestors had with the sky, there are serious reasons for concern over light pollution including wasted energy, upsetting the natural rhythms of nocturnal animals and birds and possibly even impacts to our own health. The good news is that the issue seems to be getting more attention in the press. National Geographic published a great article on the subject this past November. And while reviewing the International Dark-Sky Association web site for other media coverage, I discovered that Think, one of my favorite programs on our local PBS radio station, KERA, recently highlighted the subject of light pollution. Hopefully, the increased attention - possibly aided by the International Year of Astronomy 2009 events - will begin to make a difference. I'd love for my grandkids to some day see the Milky Way from my backyard.

First Full Moon of 2009

Nearly Full Moon, originally uploaded by neatonjr.




Hazy Moon, originally uploaded by neatonjr.



Moon Ring, originally uploaded by neatonjr.

A few quick shots to record the lunar start to IYA2009. Snapped one Friday when it wasn't quite full yet, then tried again this evening once it was full. Too many clouds, so I never got a clear view. Around midnight, though, I stepped out one last time to catch a spectacular moon ring! That definitely made up for missing out on a clear view tonight.

It was interesting to note that the moon was nearly straight overhead when I took the moon ring shot above. Not only was it near the zenith, but was about 73 degrees above the horizon. Why so high? As Astroprof explains, it has to do with the earth's tilt and the fact that since the full moon is directly opposite the sun, during the time of year when the sun is low in the sky for our hemisphere the full moon is at its highest. 

I am still researching but suspect that the moon being nearly straight overhead contributed to how large the moon ring was. I'll post more when I have an answer.

A Quiet Sun

A Quiet Sun, originally uploaded by neatonjr.

IYA2009 shot for January 3rd. The Sun, shot with Nikon D40, 55-200mm VR lens at 200mm, through Baader solar film filter. Deep in the depths of the solar minimum, no sun spots in sight. For information on when sunspots are visible, be sure and check out SpaceWeather.com.

New Year Moon

New Year Moon, originally uploaded by neatonjr.

This was a "first light" shot using my Nikon D40, new T-Ring and remote shutter control with my Meade LXD55 SN10. I had a devil of a time getting focus right - focusing the D-SLR at prime focus is a bit more difficult than the old Minolta SRT201 was - but I learned a lot and it was a beautiful night to be out under the sky.

Mercury at Twilight

Mercury at Twilight, originally uploaded by neatonjr.

One of my first targets for this year, Mercury hanging low in the western sky not long before sunset. Not as exciting as the view from the front-row seat spacecraft Messenger has, but still a beautify site. I only wish I'd gotten a good shot of Mercury, Jupiter, Venus and the Moon a day or two earlier.