There was one major advantage to growing up on a farm in the middle of no-where, it was very dark at night. The bottom 1/4 of the moon is shadowed in an eclipse in the slide above from some time in the mid 1970's. The nearest "streetlight" was in a barnyard nearly a quarter of a mile away. It was dark with very little ground light to interfere with the night sky. I loathe the term light pollution, light is not pollution it is something mankind has learned to control, but it does little harm. This was the best photo of that night, the clouds moved in rapidly after this was taken - and it was COLD.
Standing in that yard, I saw the northern lights. We were far enough north, without ground light interference to see the night sky pulse and glow with electromagnetic luminance. The internet defines this as, "The bright dancing lights of the aurora are actually collisions between electrically charged particles from the sun that enter the earth's atmosphere. The lights are seen above the magnetic poles of the northern and southern hemispheres."
We had a major meteor shower one summer. We could stand out at night and see them flash by, one fragment streaked in through the sky, growing ever brighter and landed in a neighbors cow pasture, never to be found (either landed in a small creek, or deeply embedded itself into the ground.) That was a surreal experience. I can easily understand how if you didn't know what was happening and understanding the basic science behind it, you would think that the world was coming to an end, or the gods where arriving.
Can you see the night sky where you live now?
not really; too much ground light from philly.
ReplyDeletethe best sky I ever saw was in cooperstown NY. no ground light and so many stars to see!
Here, I don't bother to look up at night
DeleteIts pitch black here with exception to a few porch lights. I can often see shooting stars or meteor showers when they occur. Especially when I sit outside in the shower nights.
ReplyDeleteSitting outside on a warm summer night, - someday
DeleteThe skies are dark out here among the grape vines. I used to sit up until midnight to watch the stars come out in the summer, but these days I fall asleep too early. There's more and more development in our region since we moved here and that means there's more and more man-made light. My road does not have street lights (and I don't want any), but the next road over has a few. The good thing is that they go off at midnight.
ReplyDeleteIt looks so pretty there
DeleteOur skies aren't overwhelmed by our little city's lights, and since we look out over the open sea, we do get some beautiful night skies. But it's not the same as what you experienced. I saw my first meteor showers when we lived in Connecticut (I was already in my 30s). Out in the country, we put chaise lounge chairs on our back deck, turned off the lights in the house, and laid ourselves down. The moment we did, a stunning display grabbed us. The tail of the first meteor I saw was clearly visibly. It was magic.
ReplyDeleteOne of life's many magic moments
DeleteNot great sky visibility here, but we can see better in our suburbia than we would closer to the bigger towns or cities. We are surrounded by tall trees in our back and alleyway, so we do enjoy nighttime “sit and stares” in the warmer months, especially when there’s a warm breeze rustling the tree leaves. I used to long for inner city environment - everything right outside more door...now I dream of a secluded life like you mention from your youth.
ReplyDeleteSassybear
Www.Idleeyesandadormy.Com
*my door*
DeleteA warm evening sounds so nice right now.
DeleteWhen I was a kid in a rural area, nights were pitch black and it was so easy to see the moon and stars! Even in the city of Winnipeg (1/2 million people), I could still see the northern lights late at night. But in Edmonton (1 million), there's too much urban light to see northern lights anymore. Of course, I'm not outdoors in the middle of the night either, so perhaps I'm wrong? I don't think so. I miss the northern lights.
ReplyDeleteI don't go out at night very often
DeleteArizona often has clear nights for star-gazing.
ReplyDeleteOn my bucket list is to see the northern lights.
Iceland some time soon
DeleteI'm in the center of Phoenix so even though I have good sky views, I can only see the brightest stars and planets.
ReplyDeleteOut the desert, the views should be spectacular
DeleteThe meteor shower was visible here. I never knew what caused the northern and southern lights, so thanks.
ReplyDeleteLots of places in Australia to get away into the dark for sky watching
Delete