Venus and the Moon, Rising before the Sun

Three weeks ago, when the moon was a sliver that rose at sunrise, I watched it glide up through my east-facing window with the planet Venus glowing before it.

The old Moon chasing Venus through the sunrise sky. © SB  

A woman at lunch later that day noticed my camera and asked if I'd seen the early morning sky — deep blue over an apricot horizon, lit by a crescent and star.

She'd pulled over on her way to work in the Abbey kitchen, stopped her car at the edge of the grid road and watched Venus, the Moon, the Sun, rise.

Sometime, we are not alone.


What is this? Night sky - a conjunction of the Moon and Venus. 

Location: Outside my window at St. Peter's Abbey, Muenster, Saskatchewan.
Photo dates: February 26, 2014. 

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Late June Aurora Borealis over Regina, Saskatchewan

Ribbons of pale green Northern Lights shimmered across the Regina, Saskatchewan, sky late last night. As I watched, the main band circled from east to west, with other flickers of Auroras along the northern horizon, aka, the roofline of my garage.

The power of Northern Lights: a heart, spade, solar explosion. Kapow! © SB

What do you see in the Aurora Borealis?
I see a woman, nude and dancing, long arms and legs extending... © SB

Shimmer, shimmer - a river of Northern Lights. © SB

Northern Lights, the fire to put the Big Dipper on the boil. © SB

I wish I'd braved the night and driven out into the country, where the lights must have been pure magic!

But I'm a bit spooked by, well, the thought of coyotes and the dark. When I'm alone, at least. And it's long after midnight and everyone else here is asleep. Except the dog, who stayed out with me for a while, then whined to go back to bed.


What are these?  Northern Lights. 

Location: Backyard, Regina, Saskatchewan.

Photo date: About 1:00 a.m., June 29, 2013.  

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Sunday Super Moon - the year's biggest full moon.

Tonight, the Super Moon rose over Regina — and over everywhere else over which it rose, but I was in Saskatchewan, so that's the place over which I saw it.

Super Moon rising over Regina, Saskatchewan.  © SB

The Moon is now at its closest point to Earth on its rotation — at its perigee — and looks about 12 per cent larger than it will next January, when it's at its apogee, the farthest turn from Earth.

Watch for high tides to follow if you live by the shore, not high here in the dry lands, where only rivers rise... (And rise with sudden vengeance.)


What is this?  The closest - and biggest - full moon of the year. 

Location: Backyard, Regina, Saskatchewan.

Photo date: June 23, 2013. 

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Northern Lights: Faintly visible from Regina, Saskatchewan

A geomagnetic storm is underway — and I'm sure if I drove into the country, I'd see clear and vibrant Northern Lights, but even in my backyard, they are faintly, softly, visible.

Here's an image, taken a few minutes ago,  corrected for Tungsten; 11/16 mm, 2.5 sec at F2.8, 800 ISO.

Northern Lights, seen from Regina, Saskatchewan, backyard.  © SB 

What is this? Streaks of green Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights.
Location: Above my garage, Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada.  

Photo date: May 18, 2013.

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