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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014

A Cosmic Masturbatory Event? Do I need a telescope to jerk off or will high grade binoculars do?

Aight.

I'm done here.

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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014

I am typically a night owl and last night I took the dog out and then went to bed at midnight or so. When I laid down and looked at my phone I saw all kinds of reports of the northern lights being visible along the state line. Had I seen this before I walked the dog I would have taken the short drive north of town to see if I could see anything but once I got in bed I said "fuck it". I remember once when I was much younger back in the early 90's I got off of work at 1am and on my drive home between Woodstock and Crystal Lake I saw them unexpectedly and it was really cool, and I have always wanted to catch them again but never have.

Damn, that would have been cool.

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Enjoying the conjunction! It's beautiful. I should have driven out near the Inebriated Rodent, but man, that thing is clear as heck.

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I was in Johnsburg last night and had no idea about this.

Damnit

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I’ve seen dozens of pictures of this already. Somehow I don’t feel like I’ve missed anything.

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There are only two examples of infinity: The universe and human stupidity and I'm not sure about the universe.

I dropped my buddy off last night about 7pm last night. He lives on a hill close to the airport facing west. He got out of the car and looked at the sky and couldn't figure out what the hell he was looking at. There were two bright lights that weren't moving. I thought it was an airplane but it wasn't moving and he thought maybe a helicopter. Guess we were both wrong...... Apparently still going to be visible tonight in the western sky. NPR article below.....



Last night, after dinner, I went outside to take care of our chickens. And I literally gasped. Up in the sky were two dazzlingly bright objects close to each other. It was a beautiful, extraordinary sight. I felt a tingle of joy and a moment of calm. I felt what psychologists call awe – an emotion that can relieve stress and calm nerves. Who doesn't need that?

And tonight is going to be an even better night to experience this awe. So, after sunset I'm taking my entire family outside to feel this warm and lovely feeling of awe. Because these two bright objects – the planets Venus and Jupiter – will be even closer.

"They've been coming in closer and closer for a little nighttime kiss," says Jackie Faherty, who's an astronomer at the American Museum of Natural History.

Of course in space the planets aren't really going to smooch. "They are actually 400 million miles apart," Faherty says. That's more than four times the distance than we are from the sun.

What is happening is a Venus-Jupiter "conjunction" — that's what astronomers call it. "Venus is passing Jupiter as they both orbit the sun," Faherty explains. "The inner planets move a lot faster than the outer planets. So you get a lot of these like racetrack passes," she says.


So, as the orbits pass, they'll appear to be about .5 degrees apart from our earthly vantage point. That means, the two planets will be separated by the width of a pencil eraser held up at arms' length in the sky.

To see this beautiful event, go outside as darkness falls and look west toward the sunset. "There is no way that you'll miss these two bright lights in the sky," says Diana Hannikainen, who's an editor at Sky & Telescope magazine. "Venus is definitely brighter and is the rightmost one. Jupiter is the leftmost one."


And while you're looking up, try something new. Pause for a moment and focus on how extraordinary the universe is. How far away these planets are. How mysterious they are. And how small you are.

"Look at that sky and think, 'Wow! That's big," says psychologist Michelle Shiota at Arizona State University. "That's so much bigger than me. That's so much bigger than my life and my problems. However real those problems are."

That's the feeling of awe, Shiota says, which can give us perspective and be humbling. "And it seems to just help us calm down a little bit in a powerful way."

If you miss the event tonight, check back on Thursday night. The two planets will still seem quite close, continuing their celestial dance. But soon, they'll go back to arms length.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

You are turning into kind of an old bastard lately. When was the last time you were in any way happy?
If you don't care why would you read this thread and bother saying anything?

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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014

I'm just trying to figure out the big attraction. I spent countless hours as a kid and then young parent at the Adler Planetarium learning about then looking at this kind of stuff up close. Frankly it's lost the allure it once had, just like with fireworks.

Is backwoods life that damn dull and did you ever go to to the planetarium regularly as a kid, or just the typical dull assed suburban school trips for enlightenment?

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There are only two examples of infinity: The universe and human stupidity and I'm not sure about the universe.

Been to the planetarium maybe 30 times. Astronomy is one of my hobbies. If it's boring to you, fuck off and post about something much more interesting to you.

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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014

It's funny just how sandy you get if anyone has no interest in the stuff that captivates you. Even stranger is that I only mentioned that I've seen dozens of pictures and don't feel like I'm missing anything. I didn't feel like looking at two specks of lite, how can I survive?? Oh yeah by doing something less dull like watching paint dry. But you're as butt hurt as a child as usual if anyone is nonplussed at another of your pedestrian hobbies. Maybe get a life and toughen up Sandy.

And maybe stop showing up like a rash.

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There are only two examples of infinity: The universe and human stupidity and I'm not sure about the universe.

In the interests of not shitting up a very nice little informative thread, I'll leave with this...
It's not for you, it's for maybe your kids. Maybe for your nieces of nephews or whatever you got now, like great grandchildren. You may have lost your sense of wonder and your ego being unchecked you may have forgotten how small you really are. Thats what this thread is for. Reminders that you're barely a speck of sand on an entire solar system full of planets, in a galaxy full of solar systems, in a universe full of galaxies.

If you don't care I'll politely ask you to leave us alone and let those of us who do care enjoy this part of nature.

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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014

Politely, grow the hell up, stop responding to me in your increasingly bitter ways and I will extend you the same simple courtesy. Or fuck off yourself.

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There are only two examples of infinity: The universe and human stupidity and I'm not sure about the universe.

Feel better? Like you got the last word?

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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014

Gentlemen,

I saw some of these lights years ago along Rte 176...

In my long too span on this earth, I have had moments where I gaze up into the heavens and have had moments that have stopped time, simply awe-inspiring...that being said they are few and far between. Perhaps that is on me.

However, neither of you are wrong. Watching the heavens can be both tedious and rewarding...the connection with what our ancestors were looking at is crazy

Funny thing is that I enjoyed reading T-Bone's account of his experience. Lost in the trash was that I actually spent quite a bit of time looking at the pictures of others. If I got lucky enough to also come across a story as personally enjoyable sounding as his it would have been nice. But as dry and or corny as the talking heads are and as basic it sounded around here, it didn't do anything for me. And I literally am sitting 10 feet from a strong telescope that I didn't feel like taking two blocks away for a much better view. If I sounded angry before exchanging with Darkside to the rest of you, I apologize to you all.

There's a reason I don't really watch the national news or post (as much) in the political section here. It's been pretty much the same recycled stuff ad nauseam and pretty pointless if not toxic. Reading stories of almost tangible(?) enjoyment is a nice return. Thanks TBone.

Embarrassing Edit: Thanks for the balance Oscar (should've mentioned that before)

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There are only two examples of infinity: The universe and human stupidity and I'm not sure about the universe.

I find this stuff semi-interesting and just happened to have that experience the other night. Generally I don't have a very good view of the western sky from where I live but an incredible view of the eastern skyline being a few blocks from Lake Michigan and very little in the way of street lights.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

I will say that if you look up at the sky and don't get the holy crap feeling its probably because of where you live. If all I saw when I looked up was (hopefully) a couple dozen of the brightest stars I'd probably say meh too. Light pollution is a real thing. And if you live in an urban or immediate suburban area you've had this robbed of you.
If you look up at the sky in places even as close as Marengo (coral woods has amazingly dark skies) and you can clearly see the milky way and millions of stars it's a different experience. Suburbs win... again.

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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014

And just where is the planetarium located? And with free admission for planning families?

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There are only two examples of infinity: The universe and human stupidity and I'm not sure about the universe.

is it a problem though? if everyone knew how significant life is how would we trick them into working 8 hours a day so the wealthy can stay happy?

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the world will always the world. your entire existence is defined by your response.

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If you want a holy crap feeling, go to Fort McMurray in northern Alberta. I have been there many times for work and one night I took a drive out of town to see if I could see the aurora. No luck there but with the cold, crisp air, it looked like the stars were in a shape of a bowl over my head. And extremely bright. Was an awesome site and it kind of made me feel insignificant.

Yeah, Alaska was crazy that way as well. You get away from the population areas and it's just a different sky. Winter sky is so much clearer typically even here. For me it's never been a hobby I have made the time to do but I have always appreciated it.

I vacationed in a rental on top of a mountain in West Virginia once with the family, and I know we had a lot of fun hiking and exploring and doing various activities each day, but the overwhelming memory I have of that trip is the magnificent night sky we were rewarded with each night, I had and still haven’t seen anything like it before.

My appreciation for firework displays has increased as I get older.

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Twice I've been semi-impressed with the night sky. The mountains in NC, and the mountains in Utah. "Oh, so that's what the milky way looks like in person". I think Earth's land features are much more impressive than the night sky, but to each their own.

When we lived up in Lyons Falls, NY, my dad saw them a few times on fishing trips. He said it was pretty amazing, especially because it’s through the night sky.

I don’t think I’ll probably ever do it but I’d love to go to Tromso, Norway, to experience the polar night. The town is lit up like a Christmas tree and there’s all kinds of banquets and stuff to keep people sane.

i'm not a world traveler like most here, but Iceland was far and away the best in terms of being awed by nature for me