“M” is for the Moon and Mars

“Ronan sighed. He flung back his head and stared at the sky. «Mars is bright tonight.» «Yeah,» said Hagrid, «but have yeh seen anythin’, Ronan? Anythin’ unusual?» «Mars is bright tonight,» Ronan repeated. «Unusually bright.»¹

This month our skies have presented us with some pretty nifty surprises. In fact, as Ronan noted, Mars has been especially bright this month, because it has been somewhat closer than usual, and even the reddish color of our nearest planet has been quite visible to the human eye. It was an even better show for those blessed with a telescope. On April 8, Mars was in opposition to the Earth and the sun, which is similar to an eclipse, with the Earth in between the two. Although I’m not lucky enough to have a functioning telescope, the event was live-streamed on Internet, and I was able to get a pretty good screen shot. I also got a shot of it with my regular old every day digital camera, which, although not the greatest, is still pretty good for that kind of camera. (it’s the smaller one on the left.)

However, that wasn’t the only astronomical show put on for the Earth’s inhabitants. This past Monday (or Tuesday, depending on where on the American continents you live), we were also given the privilege of watching a total lunar eclipse. There were several interesting points regarding this eclipse. It was the first of 4 total eclipses that will take place around every 6 months during a two year period; the next will be in October, 2014, then April, 2015 and the fourth will be in September 2015. This occurrence is called a Tetrad, and while it is a somewhat rare occurrence, it is not extraordinarily so; seven more are expected during this century, and there was another series during the years 2003 – 2004. For those of you who may have missed the eclipse and would like to see it, click here for eclipse video

One of the more interesting elements of this lunar eclipse was the color: it was the color of blood, earning it the name of the Blood Moon. This is caused by the way the light from the earth illuminates the moon. It is believed that this tetrad will consist of 4 blood moons that will be visible for most of the continental United States. Unfortunately, here on East Coast, the sky was beautiful until an hour before the eclipse (naturally). I DID get a nice photo of the moon at midnight (the silvery moon; it’s a bit fuzzy because of the passing clouds). The rest of the photos were taken as screen shots while watching the eclipse online. They are, from left to right: midnight, 2:45 am, 3:01 am, 3:18 am, 3:41 am this photo is so dark because it was just before it completely changed color), 3:48 am, 4:00 am:

         

 

¹Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, p.253; J. K. Rowling, 1997

 

©Copyright Mary Purpari “M” is for Mars and the Moon, April 16, 2014

“N” is for the Nothing Feeling

This is a poem that Russ wrote in April, 1979. I was in New York shortly after he wrote these verses and I wonder how things would have been had I met him then. Would I have continued on to Italy? Would we have been draw to each other, as we were in later years? Or would we have hated each other, so different then, yet so alike? Even now, I yearn to take away the pain and sadness described in this bitter-sweet poem. And yet, I think all of us have felt this way at least once in our life.

 

The Nothing Feeling

A neon moon is flashing

With midnight coming soon

a neon moon is rising

the juke box plays it’s tune

and a thousand little sorrows

overflow an empty glass

as I sit and think of nothing

and nothing comes to pass.

 

Sometimes I feel so weary

sometimes I gather strength

sometimes I feel so weary

at my story and it’s length

It’s like a nickel novel

with  a slowly turning page

as I sit and think of nothing

and nothing comes of age.

 

So lay me down

Lay me down

On the far side of the river

By the Holy ground

Lay me down

Lay me down

On the bright side of the river

I’ll be heaven bound.

 

The whiskey’s in the tumbler

the beer is in the stein

the whiskey’s in the tumbler

my money’s on the line

sometimes I feel so lonely

that the only thing’s to cry

as I sit and think of nothing

and nothing passes by.

 

And a thousand little sorrows

overflow an empty glass

a thousand little sorrows

letting nothing come to pass

and a neon moon is flashing

on a slowly turning page

as I sit and think of nothing

 

and nothing comes of age.

 

So lay me down

Lay me down

On the far side of the river

By the Holy ground

Lay me down

Lay me down

On the other side of the river

I’ll be heaven bound.

 

4/79

 

© Mary Purpari and Russ Kelly “N” is for the Nothing Feeling April 16, 2014