Category: Transportation

Tuesday (14-January-2025) — New Jersey

Nine-Years Ago Today. Brown Booby catches a Flying Fish for Lunch. From the deck of the MV World Odyssey while crossing the Pacific Ocean. (14-Jan-2016, Semester at Sea).

Silhouette of Jets Transiting the Sun.

Today, while looking at the sunspots (we are at or near the solar maximum) I captured images of a jets transiting the sun. This was with a Vespera Classic automated telescope fitted with a solar filter.

Slideshow of Jets Passing in Front of the Sun. Individual images are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

Cold Winter Night Sky.

The forecast for the night was clouds until near midnight. The waining gibbous moon is getting brighter (99% illuminated). I programed the “Plan my Night” sequences on the Vespera telescopes to wait until after midnight before starting to observe some deep sky observation targets in parts of the sky away from the moon. I also set up a Nikon D9 camera with a 8-15 mm fisheye lens to take a sequence of images of the night sky with the full Vespera family of telescopes in the foreground. These images were then used to create the following time-lapse video. It looks like I could have programed telescopes to start observing a bit earlier. One of the telescopes, the Vespera 2 shut down early when its battery charge went below 5%. This happened despite being plugged into a USB-C power source. I am not sure if there was a problem with the USB-C connection, or if the battery was not getting charged because the outside temperature was below 32°F/0°C. The telescopes automatically close before the sun rises. The time-lapse video is best viewed in the dark and expanded to full scale. Images captured by the telescopes to follow.

Thursday (09-January-2025) — New Jersey

Nine-Years Ago Today. Brown Booby hitching a ride on the MV World Odyssey as we cross the Pacific Ocean. (09-Jan-2016, Semester at Sea Spring Voyage)

Silhouette of a Jet Transiting the Sun.

Today, while looking at the sunspots (we are at or near the solar maximum) I captured an image of a jet transiting the sun. This was with a Stellina automated telescope fitted with a solar filter.

Silhouette of a jet with a condensation trail transiting the sun with sunspots. Image taken with a Vaonis Vespera Classic Telescope (200 mm, f/4, 1/4000 sec) with a solar filter.
Sun with sunspots with the silhouette of a jet transiting. Image taken with a Vaonis Vespera Classic Telescope (200 mm, f/4, 1/4000 sec) fitted with a solar filter.

Cold Winter Night Sky.

The forecast for the night was mostly clear. The waxing gibbous moon is getting brighter (79% illuminated). For the first of the night, I programed the “Plan my Night” sequence on the Vespera telescopes to first observe the moon, then later as the moon moves to the west picked some deep sky observation targets in parts of the sky away from the moon. I also set up a Nikon D9 camera with a 8-15 mm fisheye lens to take a sequence of images of the night sky with the full Vespera family of telescopes in the foreground. These images were then used to create the following time-lapse video. The moon is the bright object. You can watch the Orion constellation travel across the sky. Lots of jet trails, and almost no clouds. Best viewed in the dark and expanded to full scale. Images captured by the telescopes to follow.

Wednesday (08-January-2025) — New Jersey

Nine-Years Ago Today. Crepuscular rays from the deck of the MV World Odyssey. Semester at Sea. (08-Jan-2016, Pacific Ocean)

Silhouette of a Jet Transiting the Sun.

Today, while looking at the sunspots (we are at or near the solar maximum) I captured an image of a jet transiting the sun. This was with a Stellina automated telescope fitted with a solar filter.

Sun with sunspots and the silhouette of a jet.. Image taken with a Vaonis Stellina Telescope (400 mm, f/5) with a solar filter
Sun with sunspots and the silhouette of a jet. Image taken with a Vaonis Stellina Telescope (400 mm, f/5) with a solar filter.

Time-lapse video of tree getting in the way of the sun. Images taken with a Stellina automated telescope fitted with a solar filter.

Cold Winter Night Sky.

The forecast for the night was mostly clear. The waxing gibbous moon is getting brighter (69% illuminated). For the first of the night, I programed the “Plan my Night” sequence on the Vespera telescopes to first observe the moon, then later as the moon moves to the west picked some deep sky observation targets in parts of the sky away from the moon. I also set up a Nikon D9 camera with a 8-15 mm fisheye lens to take a sequence of images of the night sky with the full Vespera family of telescopes in the foreground. These images were then used to create the following time-lapse video. The moon is the bright object. You can watch the Orion constellation travel across the sky. Lots of jet trails, a few passing clouds, and a couple of meteors. Best viewed in the dark and expanded to full scale. Images captured by the telescopes to follow.

Time-lapse video of the Vespera family of telescopes viewing the winter night sky over New Jersey.

Sunday (05-January-2025) — New Jersey

Nine-Years Ago Today. Mandatory lifeboat drill aboard the MV World Odyssey. Day 1 of the 2016 Semester at Sea Spring Voyage. (05-Jan-2016, Pacific Ocean)

Silhouettes of Jets Transiting the Sun.

Today, I captured images of jets with condensation trails transiting the sun while looking at the sunspots (we are at or near the solar maximum). I was viewing the sun with a Vespera Classic and Stellina automated telescope using solar filters. For much of the day there were high level clouds partially obscuring the sun. I’m not sure why the solar images from the Vespera Classic telescope have a dark green background. The image from the Stellina telescope has a normal black background. There is a difference in the displayed angle of the sun between the Stellina and Vespera telescopes. Compare the position of the sunspots.

Silhouette of a jet with a condensation trail transiting the sun with sunspots. Image taken with a Vaonis Vespera Classic Telescope (200 mm, f/4, 1/4000 sec) with a solar filter.
Silhouette of a jet with a condensation trail transiting the sun with sunspots. Image taken with a Vaonis Vespera Classic Telescope (200 mm, f/4, 1/4000 sec) with a solar filter.

Jets with contrails passing in front of the sun. Images captured with a Stellina and Vespera Classic telescopes fitted with solar filters. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery

Saturday (04-January-2025) — New Jersey

Nine-Years Ago Today. Seagull with the MV World Odyssey docked at the San Diego Harbor. One day before the 2016 Spring Semester at Sea Voyage would sail. (04-Jan-2016, California).

Red Fox in the Backyard Hunting

Just before this video, a rabbit was observed running away. After I mowed down the wildflower meadow, the field is pretty barren.