Tucson Dark Skies

About 6 months ago I decided to plan a vacation to Tucson for two main reason. Clear dark skies and biking. Tucson is one of the more popular biking destinations in the US and I have always wanted to do a trip out there so that was the main draw. The side benefit is that it is also a great place for astronomy. We were out here as part of a vacation in 2012 and spent some time at Kitt Peak looking at stars so I knew that it would be a good place to get some pictures of deep sky objects using my Dwarf 3 which I talked about in this post. 

That is why I chose to go to Tucson during the time of the new moon so that the light from the moon would not interfere with getting some good images of the night sky. There are three main types of deep objects that you can image. The first is an open cluster like the Pleiades shown below.

This is just a cluster of stars that look like that are grouped together. Sometimes they are physically close to each other other times they are separated by tens or hundreds of light years but just look like they are together because of the alignment as seen from earth.

The next type of object is a nebula which is a collection of dust and gas and is usually a place where stars are born like the horsehead nebula at that top of the post or the Orion below. 

 

Depending on the  makeup of the gas and the light from nearby stars they can take on many different interesting and colorful patterns.

Lastly there are galaxies which are billions and billions of stars that are gravitationally connected. Like our own Milky Way or the Andromeda galaxy. 

I rented a house at the top of a hill about 25 miles north east of Tucson and spend 2 nights imaging a bunch of deep sky objects. 

I would set up the Dwarf get it aligned to the target then take a nap for a couple of hours until the image was done then get up and select the next target. I didn't get a lot of quality sleep but I got some good images that would be hard to get from our cloudy light polluted skies in NJ. 

This is a picture of the Leo triple. 

This is a picture of three different galaxies at different orientations. Although this picture may not look as cool or as colorful as a nebula it is conceptually mind blowing. I was able to take a picture with some reasonable detail that shows multiple galaxies that could contain millions of habitual worlds.

The house I rented was  in Oro Valley was really off the beaten path as I had to travel up several sand/dirt roads and over cattle grates. It was in a beautiful location at the top of a hill overlooking the valley and Mt Lemmon. 

 

It was a very peaceful place and I spent the day time sitting on the porch and looking at the mountains. It was very relaxing and picturesque. I even got to see a few good sunsets. 

 

Before the trip I wasn't sure if spending two days by myself in the middle of nowhere would be a good idea but I'm glad I did it. I didn't get a lot of sleep but I did get some great photos of the night sky and had a very enjoyable and peaceful couple of days. Next it is on to Tucson to do some bike riding. 

Knowing When to Bail

I led a ride on Saturday that was suppose to do one of my normal routes from Allentown but the it didn't work out as planned. The plan was to go down through Columbus and past some longhorn cattle before a stop at Charleston Coffee which is one of our better rest stops. The weather was going to be in the high 40s low 50s so not bad temperature wise. The winds were suppose to be in the 15-20mph range so not great but we have ridden in this type of weather before. 

I ended up having a full ride and headed out down the planned route. On Iron Bridge there was a bridge out sign but we ignored it and headed toward the bridge. There is usually always a way to get through. Not this time as there was a bucket loader hammering some pilings in and a couple feet of dirt to get through so we turned around (This is one of the very few times this has happen to me.) 

To get around the closed bridge we had to go directly into the wind which was at least a steady  25mph with gusts well above 30mph. After a mile going straight into it a couple people bailed on the ride and headed back to the start(They were the smart ones). We were only about 5 miles into the ride at that point.

 Luckily the next 20 miles we did not have many head wind stretches but even dealing with the cross wind was tough has I had to lean into it to stay close to vertical. The last 5 miles of the planned route were going to be straight into this head wind which would have really been hard if not impossible so as I road along I thought about alternate routes. 

I have been riding in the area long enough to have a mental map in my head so decided to head north once we got to New Egypt since that is almost due south of Allentown where we started. I didn't know the exact route or road names but managed to get us to the New Egypt Wawa for a stop. 

Then it was through town and up Evergreen Rd which got us to Cream Ridge and from there most of the people knew the way back. We spread out a little as the wind was really wearing us down. 

The original ride was suppose to be 42 miles and we ended up with 39 so close. It felt a lot longer than that and we were slow because of the wind. We didn't do the ride expected but sometimes you have to give into the weather and do the best you can. 

Wet and Messy

 

The temperature has increased over the past couple of weeks but it still been hard to get a ride in. The two main problems have been the piles of snow and the misty rainy weather. 

Last week I led a ride from MCP. It was in the 40s but there was still piles of snow along the roadways even though the roads themselves were clear. I created a 34 mile route of almost all back and neighborhood roads so we won't be on any main roads that have been narrowed by the snow. We stop by the boathouse to take a look at the lake before heading through the back roads of West Windsor, Plainsboro, Cranbury and East Windsor before getting back to the park. 

It was a good ride but a wet and messy one because of all the grime on the road from the past snow storms and melting snow. It took me a while to clean my bike once I got home.

During the week there was some more snow and rain which made it hard to get a ride in. I did end up going out on Wednesday even through it was a bit foggy and misty. That fog seem to be around most of the week. The weather was in the 40s and 50s, this pass week, so a lot of the snow we got a couple of weeks ago has melted. 

This past Saturday I was planning on doing Laura's ride but work on a bathroom that was suppose to be done during the week got pushed to Saturday. I did manage to get a quick local ride in while the work was being done but it was another misty day with really wet roads. I probably gained a pound of dirt during the ride. Hopefully we will get some warmer and dryer weather soon because I'm spending way too much time cleaning my bike after rides.  

Snowpocolypse

I have seen a lot of snowstorms in my life but I can only remember 3 that deposited over 2 feet of snow. This storm that happen Sunday into Monday was one of them. We got somewhere around 28 inches of snow with drifts of 3 to 4 feet. It was hard to actually know how much snow we got because during the blizzard because the blowing snow stuck to the screens and windows. 

 

It wasn't until late Monday that the windows cleared and we could see to amount of snow we actually got. I had to carefully open my sliding glass door to the patio to shovel the three feet of snow that was leaning against the door. I didn't want the melting snow to possible leak into the house. Here is what I found in my backyard. 

Yes, it's kind of pretty but the snow from the last storm we got a month ago had finally melted and I'm really sick of snow and this cold winter we have had. 

It is hard to show how deep the snow actually is but here is a picture of the amount of snow on top of my outside table just to give you some idea.

 

I feel bad for the people who had to shovel their driveways as it's a monumental chore with this amount of snow. In January of 1996 we got 30 inches of snow and I remember going out multiple times with my snowblower and then having to hack my way through the wall of snow at the end of the driveway. It was a lot of work that took over half a day. I'm glad I don't have to worry about that now since the community where I live uses backhoes to clear the driveways for me. It did take close to 24 hours until they got to my house as there are 1400 homes in my community but I did a rough calculation. I would have to had to remove around 1500 cubic feet of snow from my driveway and that would have hurt. To give you and idea of how much snow that is just look at the pile of snow on the left side of my cleared driveway. That 5 foot wall of snow is only half of what was on my driveway.

 

I haven't been out on the roads yet but expect they are not in great shape so let's hope we get some warm weather so that the roads will be good enough to get back to doing some riding soon. 

The Olympic Spirit

I spent a lot of time watching the winter Olympics over the past couple of weeks. I normally follow some of the winter sports like alpine skiing, cross country skiing, and curling during the winter so was really looking forward to the Olympics. The competition always has some interesting drama's and stories. This time was no difference. There was Lindsey Vonn's come back. She had recently come back from retirement and actually won a few races before the olympics so was hoping for a medal but instead had a horrible crash which is an unfortunate part of the sport. (The "trill of victory and the agony of defeat" all rolled up in a single person)

There was Federica Brignone on the Italian alpine ski team. She had just come back to the sport after almost a year off because of a fractured leg. She wasn't sure she was even going to be able to compete at the games and was just happy to be there then went on to win two gold metals through shear grit and determination. At the end of the race the silver and bronze metal winners bowed down in tribute to her acknowledging her amazing performance. 

And that is what is good about the olympics. Even though every one there is competing to win the gold metal there is not a lot of animosity between competitors. In fact they tend to cheer each other on and support each other. Very few people can understand the effort and sacrifice it takes to be a olympic athlete so it tends to be a close knit group. 

One of the best examples of this olympic spirit was at the 50k women's cross country ski race. Jesse Diggins is America's and the worlds best female cross country skier this year. She excels at a sport that America has never been good at. Most of best athletes on this sport are usually from Nordic countries which makes Jesse's medals and world titles all that more impressive. But her athletic endeavors are not the best thing about her. It is the joy that she has when she approaches each race and the sport in general. Its infectious and inspiring as any of her teammates or competitors would tell you.   

 At the end of the 50k (that's 31 miles on skies at about 14 mph) Jesse was racing for the bronze but her ski wax was wearing out and she was cramping so she ended up a close 5th. At the end of a cross country skiing race the athletes have used every ounce of energy that they have and so they usually collapse right after the finish and have to recover for a few minutes before they can get up. The picture at the top of the post is her right after the finish. She was totally spend and breathing heavy with the pain that comes from a long hard effort. Heidi Weng, from Norway, who took the silver medal walked over to Jesse and help her undo her skis and comforted her until she recovered. It was a beautiful jester of sportsmanship and shows that even in intense international competitive situations people can get along and be kind to each other. 

 I hope the people watching the olympics saw these moments and took them to heart because we could use more of this olympic spirit in our daily lives 

The Glaciers are Starting to Receed

After having an unusually cold few weeks the temperatures have returned close to normal which has meant that a lot the snow we got a few weeks ago has melted. It's not entirely gone as there are still big piles of snow around. But the roads are clear and I can see my grass again. 

It has really been hard to get a ride in over the past few weeks. Initially I resorted to just riding around my community until there was enough melting to make the local side roads safe. The main problem was after the last major snow storm they only plowed the roads wide enough to clear the main part of the roads. This meant the shoulders were still covered in a foot or more of snow which made it a little dangerous to ride on the roads. 

Usually it warms up enough after a major storm to melt the snow on the side of the roads but i was in the teens and twenties so there wasn't a lot of melting for the first couple of weeks after the storm. 

The past couple of weeks have been better and I have been able to do short rides on local roads. It's still not that much fun riding in cold and windy weather but it is better than riding inside. 

This past Saturday was my first official PFW ride of the year and my first weekend ride of February. The plan was to start from Etra park and do a 30ish mile loop to Millstone. On my way to the park I got a text and a phone call telling me the gate to the park was still locked. There was no sign on the gate so I have to assume that the person who was suppose to open it was sick or something. 

We decided to park at the athletic lot of Peddie school and though phone calls to me and people passing the word on we all managed to end up together in the Peddie school lot at the appointed ride time. I had a full ride of 10 people plus someone else who said he registered but I didn't see him on the PFW ride list. I knew him so let him join us. 

We spread out a little and had a few minor mechanical problems at the beginning of the ride but no major problems. The roads were a little wet but clear of snow and gravel. We did our usual stop at Wawa before heading back. The group got spread out a little more so I hung at the back to make sure everyone got back to the right place. 

I was happy to see all our cars still there as I wasn't 100% sure we were allowed to park at Peddie but it is good to know that it is there as a backup if needed. 

This has been a cold and snowy winter so it was good to get out with the posse again. Of course it looks like we are going to have another big snow storm but at least we are only a few weeks from spring so hopefully this winter weather will be over soon.  

Cold and Snowy

I had hoped that one of the advantages of being retired is that I could get more rides in during the winter. That hasn't worked out so far. Last year, when I was working, I remember a number of times during the week where the weather was warm enough to ride but I couldn't because I was working. This year has been one of the coldest winters in at least 10 years. It didn't get much over 20 degrees in the past week and has been in the single digits most mornings. We also got 10+ inches of snow last Sunday and there is no chance of that melting anytime soon. It may get above freezing next week for a little while but I think it might be a while before we can get any real riding in. 

Tomorrow is Feb 2nd and I sure that useless over pampered rodent Pucxsutawney Phil will probably predict 6 more weeks of winter. Not that I put any weight against his or any other predictions as the farmers almanac said this winter would be milder and drier than normal. The truth is that a coin flip is as good as any prediction model that tries to predict the weather more than a week into the future. 

My theory as we why we have this cold and snowy weather is that we pissed off Greenland and because of that they turned on their weather control machine and created the Greenland Block (check out the link). Hopefully they will have mercy on us soon as my heating bill is becoming a significant expense. My heater also objected to the cold as it malfunctioned right after the snow storm because of ice and water in the intake. Luckily I was able to fixed it before the house got below 60 degrees. 

Exercise is important to my sanity. I know the posse feels the same way as I got a few emails asking if anybody is using indoor trainers. I actually when to the gym in my clubhouse and spent an hour on an exercise bike. I hate indoor riding but need to do something to stay in some kind of riding shape until it warms up. I have some bathroom remodeling work that will keep me busy but I hope to get some kind of riding in. There are a few places like Tyler State Park, Pennypack and Sandy Hook where I could ride if it warms up and we get some melting. 

The temperatures have been abnormally cold almost 20 degrees below normal. At some point we will have to revert to the mean. I hope that it is sooner than later so I can get back out on the bike again and forget about this cold winter.