Moon

Crescent Moon and Venus

~ beetleypete ~ 48 Comments


(The photo can be clicked on twice, to enlarge for details)

Seen from my back garden in Beetley.
5:30 pm, Tuesday the 28th of January, 2020.

‘Tonight (Jan. 28), you can catch the crescent moon make a close approach to Venus in the evening sky. The waxing moon was in conjunction with Venus — meaning that the pair shared the same celestial longitude’.

I found that information on Space.com
https://www.space.com/moon-venus-conjunction-january-2020.html

Camera: Fuji X30.
Lens zoomed to 110 mm.
Aperture f/4.
Hand-held.

Summer Moon

~ beetleypete ~ 51 Comments

10 pm, last night. The rain had stopped for three hours, and we finally saw a full moon over Beetley. I went outside with my camera, but this was the best I could get, at 200 mm full zoom.
It is a poor photo of the Moon, but the point was that this was the first time it had been visible for over a week, due to the low black clouds finally disappearing. And it was still light, even at that late hour.

Next door’s cat spotted me, and came for a stroke. Alfie knows me well, as I feed him when they are away, and he likes to play with Ollie too. I call him ‘Alfredo Cat’, and he recognises his name. But he wasn’t exactly in the mood to pose for me, once he realised I had no food. So the photo is not in focus, as he kept moving.

After almost a week of rain, the simple pleasure of stepping outside with the camera is something to relish.

A Winter Moon

~ beetleypete ~ 49 Comments

Spotted tonight. Misty, cold, 10:15 pm. The moon illuminating the garden, through the branches of the oak tree behind our house. Hand-held long exposure, (1.3 seconds) zoom range, 200 MM. Settings, F 2.8, Aperture Priority, Sony RX 10. A standard colour shot, rendered in monochrome by the available light conditions.

A Norfolk moon, as seen by the ancient Iceni tribe.

The Moon: An apology

~ beetleypete ~ 29 Comments

Yesterday saw me post one of my usual rants about the weather. A summer’s day blighted by rain and dark skies. The Summer Solstice ruined by torrents of water, and low cloud. It was also the night of the much-lauded Strawberry Moon; the larger than usual moon that heralds the beginning of the strawberry-picking season. I was unimpressed by the prospect of this moon. After all, how were we going to see it, through a curtain of murky clouds?

The Moon must have been reading my blog. Just after 9 pm, the skies over Beetley cleared. With an hour or more still to go to sunset, The Moon became visible. Low in the sky, easily seen from inside our living room, it seemed to grow larger as we watched. I knew that I had to eat my words. After twenty minutes or so, the huge glow shone an unusual custard-yellow, as it made its way across the sky. I have seen the once-in-a-lifetime Strawberry Moon, and I apologise unreservedly.

As I drove Julie to Norwich Station very early this morning, we noticed that the local Pick-Your-Own fruit farm at Dillington finally had their sign out. It shows a large strawberry, with an arrow pointing directions. Looks like this once-in-seventy-years moon got it right after all.

The Summer Solstice, and a Strawberry Moon.

~ beetleypete ~ 26 Comments

Today is the 20th of June. Here in the UK, this date marks the summer solstice for 2016. The longest day of the year, with sunset not arriving until 10.34 pm. According to the press, there will also be a very large full moon, marking the beginning of the strawberry picking season here, hence the name. This only occurs only once every seventy years. Starting tomorrow, the evenings will begin to get shorter once again. Celebrations of this solstice will be held at various places around the country, including the famous pagan festival at Stonehenge, where Druids gather to welcome the event.

None of this matters a jot to me. It was dark when I woke up, and pouring with rain. It is still dark as I type this, and the rain continues. There has been no summer, so the solstice is redundant. It should be in the queue at the job centre, looking for somewhere else to impress with its natural splendour. As for the once-in-a-lifetime strawberry moon, I am underwhelmed. With clouds seemingly as low as the rooftops, we are not likely to see any moon tonight, strawberry or otherwise.

Just as well we don’t have Druids in Beetley.

A walk in Winter

~ beetleypete ~ 7 Comments

Today’s walk with Ollie started off well. The sun was bright at 1.45pm, as I left for the meadow. That low winter sun, so hard to look into; needing covering of eyes, and the shade providing a relief, as you turn away. We were on our own for the most part, many dog walkers put off by the early fog. I could feel the latent heat from a dying sun, and was glad to have not added too many clothing layers. For Ollie of course, the weather was irrelevant. He gambolled excitedly, just pleased to be out.

After three ’rounds’ of the meadow walk, the moon was visible, large in the sky. The sun was setting to the West, and I was avoiding the accompanying glare. I passed the time of day with some of the more casual walkers, and Ollie remained on the lookout for his usual gang of dog friends. By 2.45pm, it was noticeably colder; a huge drop in temperature, in sixty minutes. The sky was beginning to take on a marvellously red hue, and it was obvious that sunset was in full swing. I knew that it would be complete, by 4pm, so did not have long to wait.

Looking across at Hoe Rough, beyond the small river, I could see the mists beginning to form. Lying in the low areas, like gas over trenches in World War One, the thick pockets were developing fast. Within a few moments, that mist could be seen rolling downwards, towards the river, enveloping the ground. Wild birds began to fly, game birds called their repetitive song, and the sky took on that gunmetal grey, that I associate with the approach of night.

I checked my watch, 3.15pm. It was noticeably colder, my cheeks felt chilly, and passing walkers were commenting on the chill in the air. That mist was thickening, not quite across the river to the meadow, but not long away. Since I had left home, the temperature had dropped considerably. Even with the benefit of long thermal socks, my feet felt cold in my old Dunlops, and I was zipping up my parka to my neck. I decided to take a break from my circulation, and sat on the benches near the river. Ollie was keen to progress, but I made him wait a while. I watched the sun drop below the horizon, and the moon take on a full bloom. It was undoubtedly a winter evening, at least in Beetley.

Birds gone, and sun well and truly set. Although it was only 3.45pm, it was time to make tracks to home. Ten minutes later, and it was officially dark, as I got to the back door, and took Ollie off the lead. In two hours, I had experienced the end of the day. Ollie had seen few friends, as their owners sensibly avoided the cold and mist. I got in, and laid a fire in the wood burner. For the first time, in over a year of having it, Ollie stretched out before it, and enjoyed the warmth. He is still doing this, as I type. The traditional place of a dog, warming before a flame.

It makes me feel good. To live in the county that provides these delights, and to see my dog rewarding himself with a well-earned rest. Sometimes. life is just as it should be.