Billions And Billions Of Stars

There was a lot to see in this view of the northeast sky just before 1:30 AM, Tuesday, September 11, 2012. The ultra-clear sky featured the constellation Perseus (upper left), the star cluster Pleiades (right center), the "head" of Taurus the Bull (partially hidden behind the roof-mounted weather station), the -2.39 magnitude planet Jupiter (left of the station) and the 0.06 magnitude star Capella in the constellation Auriga (left center). This image was taken from Brentwood Drive NE in Cedar Rapids, Iowa and is a 30-second exposure at f/3.5, 400 ISO and 18mm focal length.

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Night Sky At The DAEC

The top image is one of 118 images used to create the "stacked" image below.  The images look northeast over the Duane Arnold Energy Center (DAEC) about two miles north of Palo, Iowa, seen from an open area just off Power Plant Road, which leads into the facility. Each image was a 30-second exposure at f/4.5, 320 ISO and 18mm focal length. Total time to create the bottom image (using StarStaX software) was from 10:33-11:39 PM, Sunday, September 9, 2012. The DAEC, which became operational in 1974, is Iowa's only nuclear power plant.

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Mini Chase For A Better Shot

Standing out like a sore thumb as I got off work, this isolated storm cell in the northeast sky was bad weather in an all clear sky. I "chased" it as far as four miles north of Center Point, Iowa to get a better vantage point for my camera. The storm cell was located more than 60 miles away in northeast Iowa, in Allamakee and Clayton counties. Hail over two inches in diameter was reported with these severe storms along with localized wind gusts ranging from 60 to 75 mph. As the high-based storms moved into southwest Wisconsin, at least one tornado formed in northwest Grant County. This view from the County Home Road overpass at Exit 28 of Interstate 380 near Toddville, Iowa was taken around 6:10 PM, Tuesday, September 4, 2012. Note the prominent bright updraft of the storm at center.

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9-11 Anniversary Morning

The -4.17 magnitude planet

Venus and a crescent moon

accentuate the display of

the American flag in the 

morning sky, a nice patriotic 

reminder of the 11th 

anniversary of the terrorist

attacks on the U.S. This

image, looking east around

6:17 AM, Tuesday, September

11, 2012, was captured from

our front porch on Brentwood

Drive NE in Cedar Rapids,

Iowa.

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Got Milky Way?

This very dark sky looking southwest allowed the Milky Way to appear almost like a line of prominent clouds around 10:30 PM, Sunday, September 9, 2012. These two perspectives look the opposite direction of the nearby Duane Arnold Energy Center about .4-mile distant, and about 2 miles northeast of Palo, Iowa. The hillock in the foreground is illuminated by the power plant. The top image is a 15-second exposure at f/3.5, 1000 ISO and 18mm focal length; the bottom image is a 20 second exposure with the same settings. A same view of the sky from nearby Cedar Rapids would render the Milky Way almost invisible due to light pollution.

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Two Conflicting Weather Conditions

If you think this is a shot of a completely clear night sky, look again. An isolated severe storm cell was producing a lightning show even though it was located about 65 miles to north. Photo was taken from just west of the grounds at Christ Community United Methodist Church in Marion, Iowa; the storm was located near the town of Monona, in northern Clayton County in northeast Iowa. Image is a 13 second exposure at f/3.5, 1000 ISO and 18mm focal length.

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Atmospheric Awe

I observed these magnificent high-based cumulonimbus clouds from ideal weather conditions north of Center Point, Iowa on the evening of Tuesday, September 4, 2012. All was clear and quiet here, but not there! Both were severe-warned. The closer cloud was located about 65 miles away in southern Allamakee County in Iowa and was exhibiting a strong central updraft (lightest area at top). The more distant cloud (left) was located in extreme southeastern Minnesota.  The small water tower in the background belongs to the nearby town of Walker. Weather conditions at this hour was 89 degrees F with a dew point of 66 degrees.

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