Astronomy Israel: Pesach

Showing posts with label Pesach. Show all posts

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

It's a Small World After All

I had been speaking with "Don" for a few days about arranging a star tour for his family who had traveled to Mitzpe Ramon for Pesach. We had been using our first names, so it wasn't until we were out observing and talking that I found out that Don lived in Riverdale, NY where Pam had lived before we were married. As we continued talking Don mentions that he has a medical practice in Englewood, NJ where we had lived for 10 years before making Aliyah in December 2009. Now I'm beginning to think we're going to have one of those Jewish geography moments...As it turns out "Don" was Dr. Don Liss who has a rehabilitative and physical medecine practice in Englewood, NJ where I had gone for physical therapy after tearing my quadriceps muscle in 2003. So, I got to ask Don a few questions about my knee, which still hurts after all these years, while he got to question me about astronomy! My daughter later told me that she had gone to high school in New Jersey with Don's daughter Sarah, too.

We started out with a nice dark, clear night a little bit before moon rise. As the evening progressed the wind picked up and started blowing in high thin cirrus clouds. Fortunately the worst of them didn't materialize until later in the evening. As we were watching, the moon came up out of the clouds and we all remembered at once that we hadn't counted Sefirat Ha'Omer yet. So, we had the unique experience of counting the third day of the Omer together while observing the stars and moon above Mitzpe Ramon.

Saturn was the star, so to speak, of the evening, as it usually is when it is visible. It doesn't hurt that it's bright enough to shine through all but the heaviest cloud cover. When it's cold and windy I frequently don't get to capture our guests on the plateau, since some people have retired to the warmth of their car before the viewing is over. But I did get to capture this shot outside the Liss' hotel. I hope everyone had a great Pesach, which is over now in Israel, but continues for another day for those of you in chtuz la'aretz.

The Liss family in Mitzpe Ramon after their star gazing tour.

Sunday, April 17, 2011

Paris Comes to Mitzpe Ramon

This mozi Shabbat we went up with the Katz family from Paris, France. It is two days from Pesach, so the moon was nearly full and quite bright, which combined with some haze, made for quite a bright sky. This is always a good object lesson in why the Indians never attacked the fort during the full of the moon.

Despite the bright sky we got to see all of the constellations and bright stars I wanted to get in. The winter stars are departing, being pushed aside by the stars of spring. We are sorry to see them go. They are the brightest of the sky and out favorite. However, the sky always presents something wonderful to see, no matter the season or time of night.

The nearly full moon and Saturn, were outstaning again tonight. We also got in the nice optical and physical double star, Alcor and Mizar, the Horse and Rider of Big Dipper fame.

A Happy and Kosher Pesach from Mitzpe Ramon to all and remember to Keep on Looking Up!

The Katz family from Paris, France, in front of Chez Eugene. Miriam was getting tired.

Thursday, April 7, 2011

"I Carried you on Eagles' Wings"

There is a video making the rounds on the Internet that has gone viral, so you may have seen it. If not, you owe it to yourself to. It is a real-time video and audio stream of a pair of Bald Eagles nesting with their young in a huge eagles' nest in north eastern Iowa. It is as grand and awesome as anything you will ever see through a telescope. The eagles are nesting in a huge six foot diameter nest weighing 1 1/2 tons in a tree on private property on a farm in Iowa. There are two cameras just a few feet from the eagles operated by the Raptor Project Trust. The stream operates 24 hours a day, including nights when an infrared camera takes over.

Ustream video stream: http://bit.ly/fJuRMT

So far two of three eggs have hatched, and you can see the eaglets under the mother eagle from time to time as they struggle to peak out or as the mother rearranges the nest. You can also hear them pipping and the wind blowing loudly. It's quite cold where they are. There is one egg left which is due to hatch any day now. The camera will be on these birds the entire time they are being reared so it should be quite an experience.

It is really wonderful to watch the tender care the eagles have for their young. The close-ups of these mighty birds of prey with their fierce eyes, giant hooked beaks and talons are magnificent, anything but the image of tender loving parents. To see the mother as she gently manages the young, settles herself on the nest to keep them under her, and rearranges the nesting materials to keep them warm and covered is as tender and incongruous a picture of motherhood as could be conjured up.

Video screen grab: A Bald Eagle cares for its young, seen peaking out below.

During this week leading to Pesach it puts us in mind of how G-d carried the Children of Israel on Eagles' wings to protect them as they left Egypt:

Exodus 19:4 "You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings, and brought you to myself."

The fierce and mighty eagle tenderly caring for its helpless young as seen in the video is as good an analogy as can be had from nature of G-d caring for his children Israel.

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Full Moons of the New Year

Image via WikipediaThis post is based on Joe Rao's article (See below), which is well worth your time to read in full. Full moons have many names in different cultures. Some of the most poetic and evocative come from Native American names, based on agriculture and hunting. It can be difficult to find them all in one place, so thanks to Joe Rao for giving us this summary and article.

If you know of any others from different cultures please let us know in the Comments or via email and we will update them here.

Jan. 19, 11:21 p.m. IST – Full Wolf Moon/Old Moon/Moon after Yule. The wolves begin to howl.

Feb. 18, 10:36 a.m. IST – Full Snow Moon/Full Hunger Moon. Summer's grain is all gone.

Mar. 19, 9:10 p.m. IST – Full Worm Moon/Full Crow Moon/Full Sap Moon. Sap's a risin'.

The moon will also arrive at perigee only 50 minutes later at 11:00 p.m. IST at a distance of 221,565 miles (356,575 kilometers) from Earth. So this is the biggest full moon of 2011. Very high ocean tides can be expected during the next two or three days, thanks to the coincidence of perigee with full moon.

Apr. 18, 5:44 p.m. IDT – Paschal Full Moon/Full Pink Moon/Full Fish Moon/Egg Moon/Full Sprouting Grass Moon

In 2011, this is also the Paschal Full Moon; the first full moon of the spring season. The first Sunday following the Paschal Moon is Easter Sunday, which indeed will be observed one week later on Sunday, April 24. This, incidentally, is just one day shy of the latest date that Easter can fall. Not by coincidence, April 18th is also the first Seder night of Pesach/Passover. This is a leap year in the Jewish calendar with an extra month (Adar II) added. This is why Pesach, and with it Easter, are so late this year.

May 17, 2:09 p.m. IDT – Full Flower Moon/Full Corn Planting Moon/Milk Moon

Jun. 15, 11:14 p.m. IDT – Full Strawberry Moon/Rose Moon. "Pick ye strawberries while ye may..."

Jul. 15, 9:40 a.m. IDT – Full Buck Moon/Full Buck Moon/Full Hay Moon. Hunting season for Native Americans.

Aug. 13, 9:57 p.m. IDT – Full Sturgeon Moon/Full Red Moon/Green Corn Moon/Grain Moon. Summer haze turns the moon red near the horizon. Fish run upstream. Corn begins to ripen.

The occurrence of this full moon on this particular date is rather poor timing for those who enjoy the annual performance of the Perseid meteor shower; this display will peak on this very same day and the brilliant light of the moon will likely wash out all but the very brightest of these swift streaks of light.

Sep. 13, 12:27 a.m. IDT – Full Harvest Moon: Traditionally, this designation goes to the full moon that occurs closest to the autumnal (fall) equinox (September 21). The Harvest Moon usually comes in September in the Northern Hemisphere, but (on average) once or twice a decade it will fall in early October.

At the peak of the harvest, farmers can work into the night by the light of this moon. Usually the moon rises an average of 50 minutes later each night, but for the few nights around the Harvest Moon, the moon seems to rise at nearly the same time each night – just 25 to 30 minutes later across the U.S., and only 10 to 20 minutes later for much of Canada and Europe. Corn, pumpkins, squash, beans and wild rice – the chief Indian staples – are now ready for gathering. If you come out with us on or near a full-moon night you will be amazed at how bright it is. That's why the Indians never attacked the fort during full moon.

Oct. 12, 4:06 p.m. IST – Full Hunters' Moon. Fall hunting season.

Since the moon arrives at apogee about 10 hours later, this will also be the smallest full moon of 2011. In terms of apparent size, it will appear 12.3 percent smaller than the full moon of Mar.19.

Nov. 10, 10:16 p.m. IST – Full Beaver Moon/Frosty Moon. Winter is a cumin' in.

Dec. 10, 4:36 p.m. IST – Full Cold Moon/Moon Before Yule/Full Long Nights Moon

Sometimes this moon is referred to as the Full Long Nights Moon, and the term "Long Night" Moon is a very appropriate name because the nights are now indeed long and the moon is above the horizon a long time. This particular full moon makes its highest arc across the sky because it's diametrically opposite to the low sun.

Keep on looking up!