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SpaceX and other space stuff

#4,301
Wood and Wire said:
Link?
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upload_2024-5-11_8-53-13.png
 
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#4,303
Winslow said:
Yeah, we had nothing but high haze and the dull orange glow of light pollution last night, but are hoping the forecast for "clear tonight" actually means it. We intend to go out and see what we can see. :thumbsup:
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Honestly, the first time I went out and looked, I had the same experience as you - then my sister sent me a message saying she had the same overcast sky, but when she looked at it through her phone camera, the sensor revealed what was really going on, and her eyes became accustomed to it.

I went back out, and sure enough, what I'd assumed was an overcast sky, and glowing light pollution, was actually a gigantic curtain of the aurora - which stated developing streaks, and bands, and colours. You could see magnetic fields pass right across travelling from west to east, causing the bands to sharpen, and then go blurry, in a wave right across the sky.

74CF3B69-E8F1-4E82-B1E5-402718EF06DD.jpeg


B103B46E-A778-44FC-9423-4FDD2744C0DD.jpeg


4F86BA39-8735-4080-947E-4F0B28A9C57E.jpeg
 
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#4,304
Wood and Wire said:
Honestly, the first time I went out and looked, I had the same experience as you - then my sister sent me a message saying she had the same overcast sky, but when she looked at it through her phone camera, the sensor revealed what was really going on, and her eyes became accustomed to it.
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There's a substantial portion of the commentariat over on today's Ars article on the storm that mentions the same sort of thing; Cell phones do a lot of heavy lifting with enhancements by default even just generally. Our phones can also shoot in RAW simultaneously, and the difference between the RAWs and "phone" JPG versions is always very interesting to see.

From what I've read so far, it looks like long exposures (3-5 seconds) and some post-tweaking will be in order for DSLR attempts.

Or, I can just be lazy, and let the phone do it. :D

Great pics you got though, in any case! :thumbsup:
 
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#4,305
Well, it looks like the aurora forecast for tonight has contracted significantly. Don't know that I'll bother trying to chase that down this evening. The latest advisory notes that another CME should smack the planet tomorrow around mid-day, though. Maybe we'll have better luck tomorrow night.

Here's NOAA's "Aurora Dashboard." Two static images appear at the top of the info pane, with a pair of animated forecasts immediately below. Click the "play" arrow in the lower left corner of each image, and give them a bit of time to load. They'll start looping then. Time codes are in the lower right corner of each display pane.

The late afternoon update, looking ahead to tomorrow:

Severe and Extreme (G4-G5) Geomagnetic Storms Likely on 12 May 2024 | NOAA / NWS Space Weather Prediction Center

G4 watch 12 May 2024.png



"Keep looking up," as Jack Horkheimer used to say. :whistle:
 
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#4,306
Winslow said:
"Keep looking up," as Jack Horkheimer used to say. :whistle:
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Always liked that guy. :thumbsup:

Too cloudy to the north last night from Tampa/St. Pete, Fl. area. I read this morning the aurora could be seen in south Florida (we are about mid Florida). Tonight is clear, but as you said, chances might be diminished. Hopefully tomorrow night is clear.

I've seen plenty of 'em when sailing up north (thanks Navy), but wife has never seen one. I really want this to happen for her.

I had to post this. Just had to... :)
 
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#4,307
fig said:
I had to post this. Just had to...
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Of course you did! :hyper: Horkheimer was awesome!

Fun fact, for the curious: The "Star Hustler" theme tune was Debussy's "Arabesque No. 1," played by keyboard pioneer Isao Tomita, on his album Snowflakes Are Dancing:



The whole album - and really, Tomita's entire catalog - is brilliant, with multitudes of classical works revisited in the then-new form of early synthesizers. Someone has put the full "Snowflakes Are Dancing" album here on the 'tube, if anyone is interested. If you enjoy that, I heartily encourage the further exploration of the rest of Tomita's works.

It's a marvelously musical reminder to keep looking up! :D

:thumbsup:
 
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