Monthly Archives: December 2023

Look for the Christmas Star Tonight

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Image Credit: Chris Vaughan/Starry Night

Sirius, the brightest star in Canis Major and in the entire night sky, will appear above the southeastern horizon by 7:30 p.m. local time in late December. It’s hard to miss Sirius once it clears the trees and rooftops.

SOURCE: http://www.seasky.org/constellations/constellation-canis-major.html

The star will climb to its highest point, in the lower part of the southern sky, shortly after midnight. If you are walking through your darkened house in the middle of the night, the bright light of Sirius might catch your eye while looking out a window because it never climbs very high.

Although white to blue-white in color, Sirius might be called a rainbow star, as it often flickers with many colors. The flickering colors are especially easy to notice when you spot Sirius low in the sky. Every star’s light must shine through Earth’s atmosphere before reaching our eyes. But not every star flashes as noticeably as Sirius. The flashes are happening because Sirius is low in the sky in the evening at this time of year. And, when you look at an object low in the sky, you’re looking through more atmosphere than when the same object is overhead. The atmosphere splits or “refracts” the star’s light, just as a prism splits sunlight. So the real source of Sirius’s flashes is not from the star itself, but rather from the refraction of its light in Earth’s atmosphere.

Happy viewing!

Merry Christmas!

Full Cold Moon

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Photo Credit: https://abcnews.go.com/US/12s-wild-decades-final-full-moon/story?id=67600540

The full Cold Moon rises on Tuesday, December 26, at 7:33pm EST.  Start looking for this full moon just before sunset as it begins to peek above the horizon.  December’s full moon has a high trajectory in the sky, which means that it will be above the horizon for longer than most full moons.

For millennia, people across Europe, as well as Native American tribes, named the months after features they associated with the seasons of the northern hemisphere.  Not surprisingly, despite the differences in these cultures, the names that each assigned to those dozen moons are very similar.

December’s full moon is most commonly known as the Cold Moon—a Mohawk name that reflects when cold weather truly begins to grip us at this time each year.  Mohicans refer to this full moon as the Long Night Moon, as it rises during the “longest” nights of the year that occur near the winter solstice.  Fittingly, December’s full moon shines above the horizon for a longer period of time than most full moons experienced throughout the year.  During this long bright night of moonglow, perhaps ponder the spiritual meanings that have also been associated with December’s full moon:  reincarnation, hope, eternity, and clarity.

Some suggestions on what to do during the Full Cold Moon –

  • Consider these activities to enjoy the beauty of this full moon in a serene winter landscape:
  1. Full Moon Hike (12/26 @ 6:30pm)
  2. Quadrantids Meteor Shower (evenings 12/26 through 1/16 with peak overnight on 1/3-4)
The December full moon will light up the sky on the evening of December 26, 2023.
The twin stars of Castor and Pollux twinkle nearby.
SOURCE: EarthSky

Happy viewing!

Winter has come

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Welcome to winter!

The winter solstice arrives later this evening. It’s the northern hemisphere’s shortest day and longest night of the year. It’s also when noontime shadows are the longest of the year.

The season offers opportunities aplenty to view our snowy landscape from a number of perspectives –

Up close:

O Tannenbaum! –
Princess Pine (Lycopodium obscurum) adorned by
berries of Canada Mayflower (Maianthemum canadense)

From afar:

Adirondack winter scene

Time of day (and with shorter days, the opportunities pass quickly!):

New Year’s Eve Twilight

Contrasts within winter’s whiteness:

…which also happens to be a water hazard along the groomed trail…

In the abstract:

Haiku – North Woods Nature Preserve

As a medium for imprints:

Coyote tracks – Third Lake Creek Trail

The arrival of this new season will mark the return of the shortest days of the entire year.  How do you want to enjoy the outdoors with those few hours of daylight?

First ski tracks of season

Here is a list of winter outdoor and online activities to consider:

Happy trails!

Snow

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SOURCE: https://www.farmersalmanac.com/how-many-words-snow-16650

I think we can all agree that snow is a four-letter word.

Whether you love it or dislike it, the appearance of snow here in December is nearly a foregone conclusion.

December is Albany’s snowiest month. Also, many of the city’s days with the heaviest snowfall total has occurred in December.  For example, two of the city’s top five snowstorm totals occurred in December:

A snow plow left a car covered in snow in front of Rain-Bo Room of Kenmore Hotel
in Albany on Dec. 27, 1969. Jack Pinto/Times Union Historic Images
https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/albany-s-10-biggest-snowstorms-17834936.php
  • #3:  26.4 inches that fell between December 25-28, 1969, and
  • #4:  24.7 inches that fell between December 13-15, 1915.

Interestingly, it has been a rare occurrence here since 1885 when the first snowfall of any given year occurred as late as any day in December.

What is snow?

When temperatures drop below 0°C (32°F) and there is sufficient humidity in the atmosphere, water vapor condenses directly into ice without going through the liquid stage. Once an ice crystal has formed, it absorbs and freezes additional water vapor from the surrounding air, growing into a snow crystal or snow pellet, which then falls to Earth.

Snow falls in several forms:

  • Snowflakes are clusters of ice crystals that fall from a cloud.
  • Snow pellets, or graupel, are opaque ice particles in the atmosphere. They form as ice crystals fall through supercooled cloud droplets, which are below freezing but remain a liquid. The cloud droplets then freeze to the crystals, forming a lumpy mass. Graupel tends to be soft and crumbly.
  • Sleet is composed of drops of rain or drizzle that freeze into ice as they fall, and is sometimes called a wintery mix of rain and snow. These small, translucent balls of ice are usually smaller than 1/3 inch in diameter. Official weather observations may list sleet as ice pellets. In some parts of the United States, the term sleet can refer to a mixture of ice pellets and freezing rain.

How many words for snow?  Read on.

View the science of snowflakes.

View a slideshow of photographs of snowflakes.

A sampling of my photographs featuring snow from my curious point of view:

Snow Globe – North Woods Nature Preserve
Late Bloomer – Snow-coated bloom of Common Witch-hazel (Hamamelis virginiana)
Canopy Draped in Lace – Ushers Road State Forest
First Light on First Snow:  Flocked Forest
First Snow – Ushers Road State Forest
As another year flames out…
New Year’s Eve Twilight
View of St. Regis Mountain (part of Adirondack Mountains)
from Heron Marsh trail at Visitor Interpretive Center near Paul Smiths, NY
River Otter (Lontra canadensis) slide – Vischer Ferry Nature and Historic Preserve
Tables with scenic views…no waiting… – Mohawk Landing Nature Preserve

May you find yourself mesmerized by the next gentle snowfall – happy viewing!