8% and non alcholic!

 In April one was disappointed at 99% and tonight under warm skies, if not exactly clear - almost, and better than most nights here in Ontario where good things might grow if the Green Belt were protected and highways and byways weren't ploughed  through to developers' real estate, there was max of 8%:

I thought the umbra was quite dark, and even the penumbra I imagined was noticeable.

No time to reduce, or even look at last night/Monday's aurora sequence. Must try to see the Sun tomorrow before the active regions rotate from sight.

WOB

Aurora alert

 In the middle of a football game, also a baseball game, I looked to see if astro.ph had new submissions for me. No, but there was an aurora alert - from Edmonton . already at 10PM!

Sceptical, because the Moon was up and bright, I went onto the balcony and had a look.

You can see we are "covered".

Here are just a very few of the images my Nikon recorded:

I'll reduce the rest someday but won't promise now, well past midnight to post then or

announce they have been posted. And I have completed the 164 new submissions from

https://arxiv.org/list/astro-ph/new

And to all a good night,

WOB

Invasion of Mariposa thwarted.

 It was on my watch, bridging 207 to 209 this AM when I noticed the fleet:

They were just 1000m off shore -

I wondered if it might be just a mirrage - like that distorted white object in the far distance, upper left:

The pirates appeared armed and capable of boarding local fishing vessels:

It looked bad for a time:

I'll spare you the blood , the plank bit, and the sharks but eventually good triumphed and the foe vanquished :

So the Medonte "Oro" is safe for another day.

WOB

Warum ich gern hier wohne - Teil 3

 Schaue mal hin:

Man denkt, Urwald und Wildniss pur.

Aber dann sieht man ein Hochhaus hinten, hinter die Bäume.

Und übersieht ein Fischadler!

Es war Donnerstag gegen 18:00. Und ich habe nur unsere kleinen Fujiapparat.

In kayak kann man nähere dran:

So, Peter, es gibt Wilderlebnisse hier, aber man muss suchen.

Was wirdst Du in Oktober sehen? Das weiss ich auch nicht.

Bis bald,

WOB

Why I live here in Orillia - Part 2

 I thought it was only last week that the Osprey oder Fischadler had visited

but it was last month!

 So what happened to renew that idea was a visit I had on Wed Aug 21, I was so

anxious that I took 2 emergency shots through the glass:

Hard to see this female Kingfischer oder Eisvögel.

So I went out side, onto the balcony and took in the view:

You can see the rusty coloured feathers indicative of the female:

I took a few more photos before retreating -

No fisherman or woman wants to give away all their secrets - not even to the

Wise Old Bird!

The iPad and the Puffin

 When I lay back - from the centre of the Earth - I saw this coracle floating

on Mica and Magma  - on the mantle. I realized that it might also be a bucket full of lists, a bucket called "The Rock" with lists like Gros Morn, L'Anse aux Meadows, Shoal Tickle Bridge, whales and dolphins,  - the list goes on.

My list, in the bottom of the coracle, included seeing puffins - "You made me write a song about puffins"

(Or in my case to post this blog) Here goes:

 

The record might be in the high 80s for number of eels in 1 bill.

Makes me wobbly just to think of what's in the  Bill of that Bird.

WOB