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JULES VERNE UNDOCKS:
The European Space Agency's robotic cargo
carrier, Jules Verne, undocked
from the ISS on Sept. 5th. Now the two spacecraft are flying through
the night sky in tandem. Michel Vandeputte saw
them soaring over Ronse, Belgium, on Sept. 6th: "The Jules
Verne was visible at magnitude 0; the ISS at magnitude -2."
Readers, check the Satellite Tracker for flybys
of your hometown.
3D BONUS: Put on
your 3D
glasses and check out Jules Verne, docked in stereo: #1,
#2. Graphic artist
Patrick Vantuyne
of Belgium created the anaglyphs from photos taken by shuttle astronauts
in June 2008.
FIND THE PLEIADES:
When in Iceland, where do you look for the
Pleiades? Scan the photo for hints as you scroll down for the answer:
Through a gap in the Northern Lights, of course. Click
here.
Sean Scully took the
picture on Sept. 6th just outside of Akureyri, Iceland. "The
sunsets are now early enough that the sky is dark after 10 p.m.
and we can see the auroras again." This display was caused
by a solar wind stream buffeting Earth's magnetic field.
Good news: the solar wind is still blowing and more auroras are
possible tonight. Sky watchers in Alaska, Canada, Iceland and Scandinavia
should be alert for Pleiades peeking through the green.
September
2008 Aurora Gallery
[Past Septembers: 2007,
2006, 2005,
2004, 2002,
2001]
PILLARS OF FIRE: "In
Greek mythology, Hercules built pillars to hold up the sky and thus
freed Atlas the Titan. I used to think it was just a beautiful legend,"
says Mila
Zinkova of San Francisco, California, "until I witnessed
the pillars myself." She found them beneath the setting sun
on Sept. 1st:
Photo details:
Canon XTI, 300 mm; 1/4000s, f/10, ISO100
"The sun held up by pillars?" asks atmospheric optics
expert Les Cowley. "We might say 'Nonsense, it's only a
mirage.' But which is the mirage and which is the real sun?
Layers
of different temperature air have distorted the sun's rays and produced
several solar
images. All of them are illusions. Even the top bright
one is raised
up in the sky and flattened."
"Philosophers ponder what is real, relax instead and enjoy
the spectacle!"
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