NATURE MONCTON INFORMATION LINE, February 17, 2017 (Friday)
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editor nelson@nb.sympatico.ca
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Edited by: Nelson Poirier nelson@nb.sympatico.ca
Transcript by: David Christie maryspt@mac.com
Info Line # 506-384-6397 (384-NEWS)
** Mother Nature has surely been thoughtful to make for a pleasant day to
be outside tomorrow for Saturday’s Nature Moncton FEEDER TOUR. The day will
start with a country style breakfast, courtesy of Jean and Billy Renton, and end
in the afternoon with more tidbits at Pat Poirier’s. The itinerary and contact
numbers are attached. Be prepared for lots of photos in Sunday’s edition.
Date: Saturday, February 18,
2017.
The time for Nature Moncton’s Winter Bird Feeder
Tour is fast approaching.
This now annual winter outing has been organised by the
Nature Moncton Activities Committee members and we hope to see a good turnout
this year.
I want to thank the members who have allowed us to come
to view the birds visiting their feeders.
Special thanks to two members who will be welcoming us
into their homes as well. The first stop on the tour will be at the Renton’s
home as they have once again graciously invited us to watch the variety of birds
visiting their many feeders while enjoying some warm breakfast refreshments. The
tour will end at Pat & Nelson Poirier’s where we will be able to see first
hand Nelson’s great ideas for bird feeding stations.
Remember: Come prepared with a supply of water, your binoculars,
camera etc. You will need to wear warm layers of clothing and boots as we will
be out most of the morning.
General schedule:
- 8:45 am: Meet at Coliseum parking lot to organise car pooling.
- 9:00 am: Leave promptly to drive to the Renton's on 1460 Gorge Rd., Stilesville
- 11:00 Mapleton Park: Gorge Rd entrance
- 11:30 pm: Bob Blake who lives in Second North River
- 12:30 pm: Connie Colpitt’s 23 Highland Dr. Salisbury.
- 1:30 pm: Nelson & Pat Poirier on 85 Mount Royal Ave., Moncton
A printout of the final itinerary with directions will
be available when we meet at the Coliseum parking lot.
The contact cell phone numbers are: 506-381-3284 or 506-866-2752.
** Many members of Nature Moncton’s community are suddenly having to adapt
to a great depth of snow. Matt Wilmot watched a pair of MALLARD [Canard colvert]
ducks trying to put their webbed feet to work as snowshoes in his Lower
Coverdale yard on Thursday. They got their snack but their feet did not seem to
work as snowshoes as well as they had appeared to hope.
** “Sky at a Glance” is added to this edition courtesy of Curt Nason.
This week with more clear skies predicted for “Naturalists of the Night” to
check out Curt’s commentary.
This Week’s Sky at a Glance, February 18 – February
25
Sometimes inspiration just doesn’t show up when I am trying to write. Rather than just copy and paste something from last winter I will relate some astronomical memories from my youth, when the stars were much closer and the snow was radioactive.
Orion and I became friends when I was about nine. I was reading astronomy books from the library at the time and constellation pictures from old star maps really captured my imagination. They remain imprinted, especially one of Orion threatening Taurus the Bull with his upraised club. Orion accompanied me on the mile-long walk home (yes, only about a mile, and uphill only near the end) from the outdoor rink, my overshoes squeaking and scrunching over the hard-packed snow of the sidewalk as I steered a hockey stick ahead of me. And I am sure he cheered each time I drilled a sponge ball past the invisible goalie tending the snowbank, leading the Leafs to yet another Stanley Cup. Perhaps it’s my fault they have faltered since I outgrew that.
The bedroom which I shared with two older brothers had a northwest-facing window, and on early winter evenings a bright star sparkled through the ice that formed on the glass inside. That must have been the star Vega. I recall attempting to melt the ice on another window with my thumb to catch sight of a lunar eclipse. I remember another lunar eclipse; of the setting Moon through the kitchen window before heading off to school. One winter, walking home from school in early twilight, Venus was in full bloom as the evening star. Occasionally the northern lights would dance, but only in black and white like our television. I never saw them in colour until much later in life.
Inspiration did come, from long ago.
This Week in the Solar System
Saturday’s sunrise in Moncton is at 7:17 am and sunset will occur at 5:50 pm, giving 10 hours, 33 minutes of daylight (7:20 am and 5:56 pm in Saint John). Next Saturday the Sun will rise at 7:05 am and set at 6:00 pm, giving 10 hours, 55 minutes of daylight (7:09 am and 6:06 pm in Saint John).
The Moon is at third quarter on Saturday, rising at 1 am and setting at 11 am. Venus continues its brilliance in the early evening sky as it edges westward from orange Mars, setting half an hour sooner late in the week. Jupiter rises around 10 pm but is still well placed for morning observing. Saturn crosses the constellation border from Ophiuchus into Sagittarius this week. You still have a week to catch the dim pyramid of zodiacal light along the western ecliptic an hour after sunset. You will need a clear sky with no light pollution to see sunlight reflecting off interplanetary dust.
The Saint John Naturalists’ Club meeting has been weather-bombed to this Monday, February 20, at 7 pm at the NB Museum in Market Square. It includes a presentation on the comet / asteroid impact that eventually wiped out the dinosaurs and most other forms of life, and the search for the crater it left as a souvenir. All are welcome and free to attend.
Questions? Contact Curt Nason at nasonc@nbnet.nb.ca.
Sometimes inspiration just doesn’t show up when I am trying to write. Rather than just copy and paste something from last winter I will relate some astronomical memories from my youth, when the stars were much closer and the snow was radioactive.
Orion and I became friends when I was about nine. I was reading astronomy books from the library at the time and constellation pictures from old star maps really captured my imagination. They remain imprinted, especially one of Orion threatening Taurus the Bull with his upraised club. Orion accompanied me on the mile-long walk home (yes, only about a mile, and uphill only near the end) from the outdoor rink, my overshoes squeaking and scrunching over the hard-packed snow of the sidewalk as I steered a hockey stick ahead of me. And I am sure he cheered each time I drilled a sponge ball past the invisible goalie tending the snowbank, leading the Leafs to yet another Stanley Cup. Perhaps it’s my fault they have faltered since I outgrew that.
The bedroom which I shared with two older brothers had a northwest-facing window, and on early winter evenings a bright star sparkled through the ice that formed on the glass inside. That must have been the star Vega. I recall attempting to melt the ice on another window with my thumb to catch sight of a lunar eclipse. I remember another lunar eclipse; of the setting Moon through the kitchen window before heading off to school. One winter, walking home from school in early twilight, Venus was in full bloom as the evening star. Occasionally the northern lights would dance, but only in black and white like our television. I never saw them in colour until much later in life.
Inspiration did come, from long ago.
This Week in the Solar System
Saturday’s sunrise in Moncton is at 7:17 am and sunset will occur at 5:50 pm, giving 10 hours, 33 minutes of daylight (7:20 am and 5:56 pm in Saint John). Next Saturday the Sun will rise at 7:05 am and set at 6:00 pm, giving 10 hours, 55 minutes of daylight (7:09 am and 6:06 pm in Saint John).
The Moon is at third quarter on Saturday, rising at 1 am and setting at 11 am. Venus continues its brilliance in the early evening sky as it edges westward from orange Mars, setting half an hour sooner late in the week. Jupiter rises around 10 pm but is still well placed for morning observing. Saturn crosses the constellation border from Ophiuchus into Sagittarius this week. You still have a week to catch the dim pyramid of zodiacal light along the western ecliptic an hour after sunset. You will need a clear sky with no light pollution to see sunlight reflecting off interplanetary dust.
The Saint John Naturalists’ Club meeting has been weather-bombed to this Monday, February 20, at 7 pm at the NB Museum in Market Square. It includes a presentation on the comet / asteroid impact that eventually wiped out the dinosaurs and most other forms of life, and the search for the crater it left as a souvenir. All are welcome and free to attend.
Questions? Contact Curt Nason at nasonc@nbnet.nb.ca.
Nelson Poirier,
Nature Moncton
MALLARD DUCKS SNOWSHOEING.FEB 16, 2017.MAC WILMOT
My Friend Orion
