Wednesday, February 6, 2008

God Made Meets Man Made


Is the title I've given my most current Sunset pic. As I was out looking to take an image of a Sunset a few days ago I noticed as the Sun was sinking it was going to land on one of the high voltage towers, not really though, the Sun is 93 million miles away, but it looked cool. The Earth has the capacity to produce 60,000 megatons of energy per year, sounds like a lot until you hear the Sun produces 77 billion megatons every second, in other words, in one second the Sun produces an equivalent of a million years of Earth energy. The Sun keeps our fragile planet warm and working even in the coldness of spaceland, makes you think on how much we depend on the little star we call the Sun.



Took another pic of Venus and Jupiter to show even though they are pulling away from each other they are still the two prettiest objects in the early morning sky and worthy of a peak at. Look to the SE. sky around 7:30 am, won't be long before the glare of the Sun blocks them from our view.


Shuttle managers have decided that a bent radiator coolant hose isn't enough of a problem to delay Shuttle Atlantis's February 7th launch, the weather on the other hand may be a problem, 40% chance of acceptable conditions for launch. The Shuttle's main mission is to deliver and install the European Space Agency's Columbus laboratory. Remember NASA TV tomorrow at 2:45pm EST all the crazy cool camera angles of the launch.

I'll leave you now with another prairie sunset video, a bunch of individual images taken with my Canon 40D and stitched together to produce what you see below.




42 comments:

Nature Nut /JJ Loch said...

Bob lovely images and post!!! You're a blog highlight. :D

I found a special post on Solar Maximus that I thought you'd enjoy:

http://swahilya-thehindu.blogspot.com/

Hugs, JJ

Max Coutinho said...

Hey Bob,

I can't believe that I actually managed to be one of the first commentators this time LOL LOL...

I absolutely loved this sunset, it is gorgeous!!! But what I really loved was the moon background (on your blog)! I don't know why but it gives me peace *nodding*!

So, the sun produces all this energy: we should definitely produce solar energy!
Right now I am looking through my window and I am witnessing a beautiful sunset, with an open-armed sea waiting to lie the sun on its bed :)...

So, what happened when NASA beamed beatles' song? Did anyone answer?

Cheers

Mike said...

The Sun is amazing. I read more about it online than any other object in space. It hurts my eyes from 93 million miles away. That is incredible.

I have to get up early one day to see Mars and Venus. They seem so close. But the moon seems like you can reach it easy but still over 200,000 miles away.

I wonder why the shuttle is in Florida where it rains a lot rather than Nevada where it never rains. Must be a reason I am sure.

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks JJ, and thanks for the link, appreciate it so much.

Bob Johnson said...

Lol Max, the Moon always relaxes me, so cool and beautiful, That is so cool that Nasa sent the Beatles music into space, I'm sure the aliens will like it as well,lol.

Bob Johnson said...

Hi Mike, good question about the location of the Shuttle, must be where the people that want control and the industries want it, maybe the desert s dry and sometimes cold climate have something to do with it, got me. Good observation about the Sun hurting your eyes from 93,000,000 miles away, shows you the power.

kml said...

Bob - Venus and Mars have really moved quite a bit in such a short time. Wish we had a clear SE view, but glad I have you so I don't miss them all together!

Bob Johnson said...

Hi Kathy, thanks, every day a little further apart, untill the Sun blocks them out all together.

Swubird said...

Bob:

Great sunset. Also the Venus and Mars image is clear and crisp. Wonderful viewing conditions you have up there.

Can you see the Northern Lights from your latitude?

Take care

tatyveli said...

Great post Bob, as always, and thanks for the great captures you produced again - loved all of them, and the sunsets compled in video too. Great info about the energy produced on Earth and on the Sun :D Have a great week my friend {{{HUGS}}}
Tatiana

Lynda Lehmann said...

Hello Bob,

That's one sunset I can actually LOOK at without fear of burning out my retinas!

I think I will eventually have a problem from shooting hundreds of sunsets every year, in spite of telling myself to quit the habit! It's quite an addiction, always looking for the best, flaming crimson sky!

I enjoyed your fascinating sun-energy facts, as well!

The Fool said...

I love the title and the choice of that first sunset picture. And gosh I really hope that the shuttle gets off the ground this time, it has had way too many delays already.

The Fool

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks swubird, that's one thing about -30c, the colder the better atmospheric conditions for taking pictures.

The Northern lights are beautiful up here, now that I have a camera that can do long exposures the next time they come along I will be getting a shot, usually more in the summer time.

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks Tatiana, glad you liked the post, you have a great week too.

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks Lynda, I know what you mean about the Sunset addiction, always looking for the next best shot, and I always see red for awhile after the shoot,lol.

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks the fool, I hope the shuttle gets off the ground this time, too many delays, but if the weather is bad, they will cancel.

RW said...

Thats awesome Bob & I am jealous of your Canon 40D lol I want I want!

Anonymous said...

I really like those stitched together videos. Do you use special software to do it?

I keep expecting to see a bird or a plane in one of the images in the series, that was not there in the previous image. No such luck yet.

It is also interesting to see clearly how the sun not only sets, but move horizontally a bit as it goes down.

Willshiresllc said...

Wow cool sunset. The wind wasn't blowing very much was it? That cloud had the same shape through the whole thing. Very cool though,

Bob Johnson said...

Lol, thanks Roger, it's a lot of fun, glad I bought it.

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks Will, no special software, there is a program on Vista called Make A Movie, when ever you open up an image its an option at the top of it you can click on, it opens up a new screen where you can import more images, very cool.

No doubt I will eventually get one of those things in my pics, The Sun looks like it is moving in two directions when of course we are only moving in one direction, the angle at which the Sun moves horizontaly changes depending on the season, tilt of the Earth, very good observation.

Bob Johnson said...

Hi Bill, no it wasn't that windy, if it were it would be too cold to take the pics, at -30c any wind would just about do me in,lol.

Livingsword said...

Hi Bob…

What can I say? Amazing image! And excellent title!

Have you ever heard of a Dicon sphere? A theoretical sphere built entirely around a sun at such a huge distance that it could survive but also gather all of the energy coming from the sun. They had one in an episode of Star Trek the Next Generation but I once read an article about this in a “science” magazine. Obviously it belongs to the realm of fiction since we are having enough trouble here in getting the space shuttles up!

Your words ring with the truth of the immense power of the Creator, and His awesome (a word I do not throw around lightly) precision and creativity. You certainly couldn’t make an Energizer Bunny ad for powering the Sun! LOL

At least Venus and Mars came close enough to have a quick visit! LOL

I’m going to click onto NASA TV to get the launch. Question: what snack foods go with a shuttle launch? (Besides good chocolate of course which goes with every occasion)

I am so fortunate to have visited your blog today since I got to see the picture and video of the Sun! A bright ball of light is in the sky here today and I forgot what it was called since I hadn’t seen it for so long! LOL

Another Bob the Best article…..

Peter said...

Hi! Bob. The photo of Venus and Mars reminds me of two old friends meeting after not seeing each other for sometime. To meet up again some sunny day!

Take Care,
Peter

Anonymous said...

As usual Bob, a very very nice sunset shot. I'm starting to become envious, until I look at the weather channel and see the temp in Saskatoon :-)
With all that warmth the sun provides couldn't we get a little extra over winter without too many repercussions?
Have a wonderful weekend Bob.
~JD

Bob Johnson said...

Lol livingsword, love chocolate too. Actually I was going to mention the Dyson Sphere when I did this post , but then it got all complicated and such, It is essentially satellites surrounding the Sun to capture its energy, this is the catch, it would happen in about 3200 years they estimate, that is when we become a class II civilization, right now we are a class 0, notta, civilization, it is actually pretty interesting stuff, class III civilization is when we are able to go to other stars, but we will have to be able to break the light barrier, this they say can take anywhere from 5800 years to millions, but that is nothing compared to the age left on the Sun, around 4.5 billion years, interesting but heady stuff.

Bob Johnson said...

Hey Peter, that was a cool analogy.

Bob Johnson said...

Lol JD, no kidding all that energy and we are at -30c,lol. Have a great weekend too.

Anonymous said...

Unfortunately I cannot see the cool videos ... my dial up connection is too slow and the computer here at work won't allow it.

So that's a sad and sorry thing for me! That stuff about the sun is certainly interesting. Thank you so much for making this such an informative place to visit - unlike the mindless chatter on some blogs... (specifically mine).

Bob Johnson said...

Hi Shirley, too bad you can't see the videos, oh and BTW you have some of the coolest blogs around.

Michael J. Kannengieser said...

Hi Bob,
The one aspect about the sun which fascinates me the most aside from its enormous size is the fact that it takes approximately eight minutes for its rays to reach Earth. It astounds me that during the day, the light which surrounds us is actually historic, in a sense. Eight minutes is long enough for the sun to explode and for me to finish a cup of coffee before evaporating. It gives me the chills. As always, your posts are educational and fascinating. Thanks, Bob. -Mike

Bob Johnson said...

Hey Mike, lol, I think the very same thing when I'm looking at the Sun whether it be through a telescope or a sunrise/sunset, very cool, that what I'm looking at happened 8 mins ago, not to worry about the Sun blowing up, the old Sun got a lot of life in her yet.

Nature Nut /JJ Loch said...

Bob, what year do you think we'll land on Mars? They're starting to talk about it more on the morning news.

Hugs, JJ

Bob Johnson said...

Hi JJ, I think the NASA time line is for 2030 give or take a few years, there is all kinds of dates out there, I dont think it is going to be any earlier then that , but who knows for sure, look at what happened to the Atlantis Shuttle mission, delayed 2 months, and that is a pretty straight forward mission.

Oswegan said...

Cool shots Bob. I wish the weather were that nice around here!

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks oswegan, I wish it were warmer here, even if it gets above zero it would be nice.

Anonymous said...

Bob, I just love visiting you site. The information here is wonderful and your pictures are amazing. Thanks.

Love and Blessings,
AngelBaby

Bob Johnson said...

Always good to hear from you, thanks AngelBaby.

MYM said...

Beautiful sunset video :)

myonlyphoto said...

Bob you are lucky to at least get these nice sunsets, in here, not even that. I really gave up looking at the sky this winter, all we get is overcast skies all the time, combination of cold, and we probably get some lake effect, and some stuff always coming from JJ, lol. Past couple of days was really cold, however, not as cold as I remember in 1995, it was over -50, you could see the steam coming off the roead, lol. Anyway, thanks for the update on the sun, and thanks we still have it behind the clouds. Another beautiful photos of the sunsets. Sorry to arrive late here....Anna :)

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks drowsey!

Bob Johnson said...

Hey Anna, thanks, I have been pretty lucky, mind you it's been stupid cold at -40 to -50c