ASTRONOMY UPDATE (24 March 2009)

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Dennis Mammana

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Mar 24, 2009, 7:30:37 AM3/24/09

to Dennis Mammana

One last e-postcard from the majestic state of Alaska; as you can see, in Alaska it’s difficult to take a really bad shot!

Denali (Mt. McKinley) is rarely seen without clouds shrouding its top; we were on the train north so I couldn’t hang out and wait for good light later in the day. The aurora photo was from just a few hours ago. Our group had been pretty disappointed that we hadn’t seen much in the sky—until tonight. Everyone was very happy, despite temperatures well below zero and howling winds that made it feel like 30 below! To the left of center appears a nearly vertical beam—the LIDAR Observatory at the Poker Flat Research Range behind the ridge about five miles north was shooting a laser beam skyward.

Will be heading home in a couple of days… I hope. Mt. Redoubt just blew its top yesterday and is belching ash all over Anchorage and surrounding areas, making it tough and dangerous for air travel. Time will tell.

Regular astronomy updates will resume in the next week or so.

Dennis

________________
DENNIS MAMMANA
www.DennisMammana.com
www.twanight.org

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