A Rare Occurrence

From what I read, this particular conjunction of Venus, Jupiter and the Moon won’t happen for another 44 years. Here’s hoping I’ll be here for the encore!

I have to admit, if I had realized just how rare tonight’s gathering was I would have tried for a more scenic location than a city parking lot, but the first photo does show the event in a larger context.

::

Venus is on the left and Jupiter on the right.

::

You can see the full roundness of the moon thanks to “earthshine.”

::

The small dots are actually some of the moons of Jupiter! They can be seen easily through regular binoculars; always fun to look at during the warm summer evenings.

::

Till next time!

::

Here’s the final set of images from our trip to Missouri and St Louis last month. Nothing spectacular here, but I wanted to share some of the photos we took, mostly at the largest park in St Louis, Forest Park. Additional images on flickr.

Here is the final batch of photos from our recent trip to St. Louis by way of Quincy, Illinois and Hannibal Missouri. Additional images available at flickr. Also worth noting, Sheryl took all but the 4th photo on this page; between the two of us, we do generate a few photos when traveling.

These first two show the high water mark when the Mississippi River flooded in June 2008. This is just a few miles northeast of Quincy.

::

These shots are taken from Riverview Park in Hannibal. It quite lived up to its name with wonderful expansive views of the mighty Mississippi.

::

The next photo is an old building in Hannibal, and the last image is taken from a scenic overlook a few miles south of Hannibal, looking south.

::

For your viewing pleasure, a few photos from northeast of Lindsborg taken yesterday around sunset (larger versions on flicker):

Sheryl decorated the house and put up a yard decoration while Lisa and moneka both carved a pumpkins; trick-or-treaters seemed to enjoy the spectacle, shown below:

::