Get Lost logo

Stardate Online has a daily celestial observation for you to enjoy, and you can also get their yearly almanac, just like the one we freely poach.

Eclipse home page for how to raise algae for fun and profit in your kitchen sink. (What did you THINK would be there?)

Jet Propulsion Labs Space Calendar


Details on the Sun, sunspots, and aurorae.

The Sun's magnetic explosions and burps of gas from the surace will be at an 11-year high in 2000 and early 2001, so even the less-polar latitudes will have a good chance of seeing the Aurora Borealis. Best time to look is at true midnight, halfway between sunset and sunrise. Check these web sites for leads on aurora-watching:

National Weather Service has pictures of aurora borealises, and the University of Alaska at Fairbanks has stuff on auroras, too.


Aurora Australis (Southern Lights) picture courtesy of NOAA

Aurora borealis (Northern Lights) picture courtesy of NOAA

This year's meteor showers are difficult to see due to the full moon, but they're worth looking for, anyway.
  

Calendar of Natural and Unnatural Events


J U N E ' 0 0

This month look for:

  • the new quarters for Maryland and South Carolina,
  • The Manly Men Parade, Roslyn, Washington,
  • Comet C/1999 S4 (Linear) which will be visible with binoculars or really good eyesight with good conditions. It gets better in July.

6/9 - Lind Rodeo & Combine Demolition Derby. Tell me you're not fascinated by the ultimate in recycling. The Derby is Friday night at 6:00, and uses inoperable wheat combines that are at least 25 years old. Sponsors paint them up like shopworn tarts, and they go out there in a shower of sparks, thrown rods and baling wire, limping around sans back wheels like the black knight in Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Read about last year's event. The rodeo follows on Saturday and Sunday, with a dance on Saturday night and a breakfast Sunday morning.

6/14 - Flag Day.

6/16 - Full moon also known as the Flower Moon, Rose Moon, Strawberry Moon, or Honey Moon.

6/18 - Father's day

6/19 - Prince Edward's & Sophie's 1st wedding anniversary

6/20 - Summer Solstice occurs at 8:48 pm CDT, marking the first day of summer in the Northern hemisphere, first day of winter in the Southern hemisphere. Email your Australian friends and ask them "Cold enough for ya?" That one's funny all over the globe.

J U L Y ' 0 0

THIS MONTH:

Sand sculpture competition, Long Beach, Washington. Dave McBee's bus trip to Oysterville will get you there from Seattle, and you can choose from various inexpensive hotels in town and camping at the north end of the Long Beach peninsula. Dining at the Ark restaurant in Oysterville should be by reservation, but your luck is better if you pick up some Dungeness crabs in Seaview and eat them on the beach. If you're not into sand sculpture, kite-flying is popular.

7/1 - New moon.

7/1 - A partial eclipse of the Sun is visible from the southern tip of South America.

7/1 - Canada Day

7/4 - US Independence Day.

7/5 - Clean the charcoal snakes off the sidewalk, find and re-attach fingers.

7/16 - Full moon, also known as the Hay Moon or Thunder Moon.

7/25 - Look for Comet C/1999 S4 (Linear) which should be at its maximum brightness. It will be fairly close to the Big Dipper.

7/30 A partial solar eclipse is visible around sunset from the Northwestern US, and earlier in the afternoon from Alaska and western Canada. Get out the welder's mask to really see it without going blind.

This month: Look for the new quarter for New Hampshire. Which one?