Big Dipper Dominates On A Cool Summer Night

Perhaps the most recognized formation of

bright stars in our skies, the "Big Dipper" dominates this view of the northwest sky around 11:12 PM, Tuesday, June 28, 2011. The Big Dipper is actually an asterism--that is, a prominent group of stars not making up the entire constellation (in this case Ursa Major). This view looks over Bowman Woods Park in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and was a 45-second exposure shot at f/3.5, 500 ISO and a 18mm focal length. A thin bead-string of stars can be seen at right center, pointing to the 2 o'clock position of this image. From left, they are: 4 Draconis, Kappa Draconis, 6 Draconis and HIP61564. Of these, Kappa Draconis is the brightest, shining at a 3.84 magnitude.

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Satellite Streak

Clear and cool (60 degrees F) summer conditions in the early morning hours of Tuesday, June 28, 2011, allowed for the creation of a light streak from the movement of satellite COSMOS 1812 (bottom) from this one-minute exposure at f/3.5, 320 ISO and an 18mm focal length. This view looks west over Bowman Woods Park in Cedar Rapids, Iowa around 3:12 AM. The bright cluster of stars at top left center is the constellation Lyra, dominated by the 0.00 magnitude star Vega.

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Cirrus 'n' Saturn

Drifting nighttime cirrus clouds are accentuated in this 16-second exposure at f/3.5, 500 ISO and 18mm focal length. This west-looking image was captured just before midnight from the grounds at Echo Hill Presbyterian Church in Marion, Iowa on Friday, June 24, 2011. The bright object at center is the planet Saturn, accompanied at its 2 o'clock position by the fainter 3.43 magnitude star Porrima in the constellation Virgo. The 2.12 magnitude star Denebola in the constellation Leo is seen at far right.

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Circle Of Stars At Echo Hill

Star trails wheel around Polaris, the North Star (top), in this image taken from the parking lot at Echo Hill Presbyterian Church in Marion, Iowa. The image is a product of a stacked group of nine three-minute exposures taken from 11:29-11:55 PM on Friday, June 24, 2011. Each exposure was shot at f/3.5, 250 ISO and 18mm focal length. The grayish-brown areas at bottom are encroaching clouds which obscured the entire sky less than an hour later. The night was calm, the air temperature cool--around 60 degrees F--with no pesky insects. The bright group of stars at upper left is the pan area of the Big Dipper (Ursa Major). The bright stars at far right make up the constellation Cassiopeia.

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Sequential Images Of April 9 Tornadic Circulation

When our storm chase team members were on-the-spot witnesses to this set of scenes about five miles southeast of Mapleton, Iowa around 7:30 PM, Saturday, April 9, 2011, we weren't totally sure if what we were actually seeing was a tornado or not. The structure was dust and rain-wrapped--with darkness falling--adding to our difficulty of making out much inside the churning mass of clouds. Also confounding us at this particular moment was the perceived lack of confirmed reports from spotters and Emergency Management personnel in the Mapleton area. As it turned out, my camera was much better at discerning the circulation than were our naked eyes. A passing motorist had pulled up alongside us earlier and told us he had heard of "two tornadoes on the ground at Mapleton." Confirmation of a single (EF3) twister came later and the town suffered damage to about 60% of its area as a result of this storm. After reviewing the video in which these images came from, we are now convinced that this circulation may actually be an RFD (Rear Flank Downdraft)-induced anticyclonic "flare." Its location and time does not match up with the main vortex, which would have been farther NE, and the main vortex spun cyclonically, leading us to this conclusion. These four video frame image captures were taken at the connector bend of Sumac Avenue (foreground) and 170th Street (background). The lower right image shows a satellite funnel protruding from the left side of the main vortex structure.

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Cone Clouds

Reminiscent of a Marvin Cone painting, these cumulonimbus calvus clouds billow in the distant north sky along US Highway 20 around 4:50 PM, Sunday, June 19, 2011. This position was located at the River Forest Road exit (Exit 70) at Evansdale, Iowa, less than mile east of Waterloo. Cone (1891-1965), a Cedar Rapids, Iowa native and friend of artist Grant Wood, was well known for his oil paintings of billowing clouds.

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Firefall

The sun sets through a northwest sky in Marion, Iowa accentuated by smoke from wild fires in Arizona at 8:30 PM, Tuesday, June 7, 2011. This view was captured just west of the Christ Community United Methodist Church in Marion. The thoroughfare in the distance is East Robins Road.

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