Night Flashes

It was one of those situations where, from our house--with all the tree, house and other obstructions--it appeared that lightning was flashing from a clear night sky.  It wasn't. These images captured a distant severe storm cell low on the northern horizon with clouds illuminated by the continuous flicker of lightning. The cell was located about 65 miles away--near the town of Monona, Iowa in northern Clayton County. The camera here was located just west of the grounds at Christ Community United Methodist Church in Marion, Iowa. In the background of each shot is East Robins Road. The top image was a 15 second exposure at f/5, 1600 ISO and 18mm focal length and shot around 9:40 PM; the bottom image is a 30-second exposure at f/4.5, 320 ISO and 18mm focal length, and shot around 9:50 PM. Note the stars surrounding the isolated spectacle.

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In Harm's Way A Long Way Away

This severe-warned storm cell on Tuesday evening, September 4, 2012 in northeast Iowa was unusual in that it was by itself. Completely isolated. Elsewhere there was clear and sunny skies as far as the eye could see. The top two images here look northeast from Wileys Road, a gravel road just west of North Center Point Road, located about four miles north of Center Point, Iowa. The top image was shot at 5:52 PM with a focal length of 200mm. The middle image was shot at 5:50 PM with a focal length of 22mm. The storm was about 65 miles to the northeast and about 10 miles southeast of the town of Waukon in Allamakee County. The bottom image is a DVN radar image capture from 5:48 PM, showing the storm cell's position on the map.

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Filament Cloud

This cirrus cloud appears to

be made up of interwoven 

filament strands. The cloud

was seen in the north sky

as observed from Bowman

Woods Park in Cedar Rapids

around 7:00 PM, Saturday,

September 2, 2012.

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Peeking Sun Halo

A setting sun produced this partial halo effect looking west from Bowman Woods Park in Cedar Rapids, Iowa at 7:00 PM, Saturday, September 1, 2012. The sun was 6 degrees above the horizon at this moment and sunset was at 7:37 PM CDT. When conditions are right water vapor in the frozen upper atmosphere condenses into tiny hexagonal ice crystals which catch the sunlight and bend it, like tiny prisms. Because of the sun's low position in the sky and a cover of trees, only the upper part of the halo was visible.

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Moonlight To Fly By

Two formations of Canada Geese fly just above the tree line and below the moon in this perspective view of the SSE sky as seen from the Bowman Meadows housing development south of Boyson Road in Marion, Iowa. Photo was captured around 8:10 PM, Monday, August 27, 2012.

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Triangle Twilight

The planets Mars (upper left), Saturn (upper right) and the star Spica form a prominent triangle as they set in the WSW sky as seen from the grounds at Echo Hill Presbyterian Church near Marion, Iowa around 8:55 PM, Friday, August 24, 2012. This image is an 8-second exposure at f/8, 2000 ISO and 26mm focal length. Spica is the brightest star in the constellation Virgo.

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August Triad

At center above this cornfield located just south of Echo Hill Presbyterian Church and east of C Avenue near Marion, Iowa is the triangular formation of the planet Mars (upper left), planet Saturn (upper right) and star Spica (below planets). This image was captured just after 9:00 PM, Friday, August 24, 2012. It is a 15-second exposure at f/6.3, 400 ISO and 26mm focal length. Mars shone at magnitude 1.17, Saturn at 0.79, and Spica at 0.96. Spica is the dominant star in the constellation Virgo.

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