Stargazing 2024-11-05: Big Dipper (publ. 2024-11-05)
The skies cleared up yesterday evening (2024-11-04) but I was too tired to go out, having gotten up early that morning, getting by on about five hours of sleep. Micah really wanted to go out, and even cried with disappointment, but I knew I couldn't stay awake much longer. And indeed I was asleep within five minutes of hitting the sack.
This morning the skies were still mostly clear when I got up for work about 3am. After a hasty shower, I was able to get out to the yard about 3:45, with sketching materials, the binoculars, my little fold out table, and my cold weather gear. After a few minutes of surveying, I decided to focus on the handle of the big dipper, which was in a convenient viewing location. I worked on a sketch for about 30 minutes and then, as some clouds were rolling over, the stars got dimmer and dimmer, until I was forced to give up about 4:30. Here is the sketch, so far as I was able to finish it:
sketch targetting the Big Dipper handle
I was in the process of drawing more stars around η and ζ when everything faded out of view.
As last time, I used the binocular FoV as a means to guess angular distance. The rough sketch was retraced with pen afterwards. I used blue ink this time for the angle marks to make the sketch less confusing.
Something I would like to try also is making a record of the color of the stars, as my eyes see them, at least for the brighter stars. I was planning to do that this morning, but didn't have enough time.
I would have kept working at it a bit longer — until 5am at least. But it was providential that I was forced to stop early, as it gave me an extra 30 minutes before work for morning prayers.
With our general elections today (USA) there is a temptation for Christians to become anxious about the results as well as the aftermath of the election. But it is critical that, having prayed and voted, we recognize that the Creator's powerful hand is still steering the ship of history.
O Lord, my heart is not lifted up;
my eyes are not raised too high;
I do not occupy myself with things
too great and too marvelous for me.
But I have calmed and quieted my soul,
like a weaned child with its mother;
like a weaned child is my soul within me.
O Israel, hope in the Lord
from this time forth and forevermore.
— Psalm 131 (NASB 1995)
Copyright
This work © 2024 by Christopher Howard is licensed under Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International.
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Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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