ALERT NEWSLETTER – October 2020

Hi everyone and welcome to the October ALERT Newsletter.

Fall has arrived and with it we can look forward to the changing of the fall leaves, the occasional nip in the air, and perhaps Hobgoblins visiting us at the end of the month.

October is a fun time of the year, usually being not too hot and not too cold – the “Goldilocks” of seasons.

It is a time to enjoy fall football, the baseball playoffs and the last outdoor adventures of the year.

Here is hoping that you safely enjoy the days that this season and the pretty weather October brings.

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When 911 Fails

As I was writing this newsletter it was reported that there was a 911 outage affecting several states.
Though this did not affect Alabama the question came to mind “do you know how to directly reach first responders should 911 fail?”

Posted next to our home telephone, which is a “hardwired”, phone not dependent on the internet, we have a list of numbers for ready reference in case of emergencies or utility outages.

In case you are wondering why we still have a hardwired dinosaur phone and haven’t switched to a modern VOIP system, as we have been repeatedly pressure to do, I will cite three examples of why I consider it too fragile a system for me to depend on during an emergency.

1. My workplace everything is computer based. When the computer system crashes, as it likes to do, all the telephones die. The only way to summon emergency response is through cellphones, and our cell coverage ranges from pathetic to sorry, which if I did not know the location of what few and transitory coverage hot spotswe have, and that I have other ways to reach out, it would be a serious vulnerability.

2. Though telephone salespeople assure me that during a power outages that the “battery backup supplies have improved greatly, they last for hours and hours and hours”, I know that that is, to be kind, either an overestimate based on faulty training or to be less kind, proof that the blooming thieves, whose companies will remain a unmentioned, will say whatever they want to get a sale.
Once the backup battery supply dies, your phone dies with it, which will happen much sooner than advertised.

3. If the router goes out, as mine did recently, so does your internet access, including the VOIP telephone. I had to use my Fred Flintstone hardwired telephone, the same dinosaur that they want me to get rid of, to call the customer support line of the high tech gizmo that they want me to switch too since it’s “so much better.”

So, for durability and peace of mind, as long as there the option to have a hardwired phone, I feel it’s worth the cost.

As to my emergency list, here is the example with explanations to follow:

EMERGENCY NUMBERS

Police
Fire
Alabama Power
Spire / Gas
Water
Phone Company
Poison Control
Doctor
Pharmacy
Family Contact

In the blue section of your phonebook or published online, you will find on the police and fire department websites, either the dispatch, non-emergency or administrative telephone numbers. Depending on the size of the city sometimes it will be the number to the headquarters, sometimes to the precinct. Under normal conditions, of course you would use 911. But, if 911 does go out you can reach these agencies directly and get help.

I include the outage reporting numbers for the major utilities – power, gas, water & telephone.

Then comes the medical quick list. This would include the Poison Control Center, your primary care physician and perhaps specialists, such as the cardiologist, and your pharmacy.

Then finally I include a contact person. Most emergency preparedness guides specify an out of state contact person, but, I would include a local one also.

Search out these numbers and modify the list to fit your own needs and post it several places so you won’t have to frantically search for it during an emergency.

Now if your all forms of telephonic communications, landline or cell, fail you, “when all else fails, there’s Amateur Radio.”

Know your local club, Skywarn or ARES repeater frequencies. Sometimes they are separate repeaters, sometimes they are one and the same. In Birmingham it is 146.880 MHz and Shelby County is 146.980 MHz. If you are reading this in another location you may find the nets serving your area at: http://www.arrl.org/arrl-net-directory-search

On HF 3.965 MHz doubles as Alabama’s ARES and NTS net. For other states you may your nets using the search tool just mentioned.

On CB, and yes I have one, Channels 9 & most especially 19 are options for calling help and on the GMRS band there have been suggestions that Channel 20, 462.675 MHz be used as a travel and emergency channel, if a repeater exists in an area, which in Birmingham it does not, using PL tone of 141.3 hz is recommended.

Hopefully someone will actually be listening also, since it takes two to tango or pass emergency communications. That said, when is the last time you lurked on your radio just in case someone needed a helping hand?

On quasi-related topic, I’ll mention that many people listen to hams on scanners. That’s how I discovered the world of ham radio and developed the interest in getting a license. Some feel it’s a goos way to “get the inside scoop” on what is happening. This is an assumption that is somewhat faulty, for any radio reports you hear, whether police, fire, ham or whatever the source, should always be taken with “a grain of salt” and considered as “unverified”. The same is true with social media reports.

What you hear or read may be true, may be a rumor, may be an overexcited operator who has watched Twister a little too much or simply a “false alarm”, either an honest mistake or sent by someone who has more time than sense.

As an example a report is received that “there is a tornado on the ground in Possum Holler”. This is relayed to the NWS, who instead of instantly writing a warning and the EMA then triggering the sirens, take a quick look at the radar to see if there is even a storm in that county. IF so fine, if not, no warning is issued. Since Bubba was actually seeing the plume from the smokestack at the oil refinery, that was a good move.

Since so many are buying inexpensive Baofeng radios, some with the stated purpose of “wanting to know what’s going on”, I felt this was worth mentioning, relevant or not.

 

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911

The following article was originally featured in the October 2017 Newsletter. It was also presented online, and received positive feedback from several including first responders, and since it was so well received, I feel it appropriate to include it here.

This article is based on an actual incident which occurred where it was requested that 911 be called, but no further information was given. By the time the needed information was received so that 911 could dispatch the correct department going to the correct location, the person had recovered to the point that he refused help when the paramedics arrived. While the situation resolved itself with a happy ending, the potential for a tragedy was very real.

Just two simple missing items, namely the nature of the problem and the actual location within the generalized location froze the EMS response until the 911 operator could reach the person calling, and get the information needed to determine WHO should respond and WHERE they should respond. This situation was complicated by the fact that the caller had hung up the phone and wandered away to stare at the scene.

In response to this I generated some guidelines and posted them on social media and at work to help people know what to do when they need to call 911.

Before I begin those guidelines it should be mentioned that if you find yourself needing 911 whether being at the scene of an incident, whether it be an accident, a medical emergency or a disaster, don’t assume that someone has or is calling 911.

As a paramedic recently told us in a CPR class which I attended, “Just because you see a dozen people will cellphones out, don’t assume that anyone is calling 911. Most are taking pictures so they can post it on social media”. “If you are the one giving CPR point to a specific person and direct them to call 911.”

Here then are Mark’s Guidelines For Calling 911:

“’CALL 911!’(‘click’ as the caller hangs up)

That is NOT how to tell someone to call 911, NOR is the similar “SEND HELP” (‘click”) the way to call 911.

If a situation arises where you or someone you ask needs to call 911 there two pieces of information the 911 operator will absolutely need.

1. Nature of the emergency.

Even if you can only say or text “fire” it will help in getting the correct department heading your way. A lady in labor doesn’t need the SWAT team & the only thing paramedics can do with an active shooter is throw syringes at them like darts and squirt them with IV fluids.

A wreck and an armed robbery require different responses. The same is true for heart attacks vs a staple in the hand.

2. The exact location of the emergency and the victim.

If you call from a cell phone the address will not be displayed on the dispatcher’s caller ID, the call will automatically be routed to the nearest 911 center by the cell tower, which may be in a different city or different county. If you are calling form a cell phone or if you are calling from different location than the scene, they will need the correct address of the incident. And, just saying “the mall” doesn’t help at all, WHERE in the mall? Some malls, for example The Summit, are almost cities within cities.

The same is true of roadways. They will need the street name, cross street, highway mile marker or some sort of address to pin point the location. “By the service station on Green Springs” won’t help. There are seven service stations I can think of on Green Springs and Green Springs itself is at least five miles long. BE SPECIFIC.

Just these two missing pieces of information will freeze up or slow the EMS response time to a snail’s pace, because they have no idea of the situation they are heading into or even where the situation is actually located.

Also, unless you, for safety sake cannot remain on the phone or are giving CPR, STAY ON OR NEAR THE PHONE so the dispatcher can get any other needed information.

Remember, in an emergency every second counts.”

One item I will throw in is that many parents give their children old cellphones to play with, not knowing that even though the phone may be deactivated, they are by federal requirements still able to call 911.

Children playing and calling 911 have tied up operators nationwide as they have to deal with Little Timmy’s call.

So, if you give your child a phone to play with, just remove the battery.

This information, is really common sense, but, apparently not as widely known as it should be.
So I would urge you to share this information with others, including family members and coworkers.

Just the act of sharing may save lives.

Maybe even your own.

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Birmingham NWS Fall 2020 Spotter Courses

The Birmingham NWS will be offering several ONLINE Basic Spotter Courses and a single ONLINE Advanced Spotter Course this fall. These online classes are FREE, and allow individuals to complete these courses in the comfort of their own home or office.

By attending any course, which runs about 2 hours, an individual or a group of individuals will become SKYWARN Spotters.

In following COVID-19 guidelines, the NWS is not conducting in-person classes at this time.

Unless you’d like to or are in need of a refresher, you do not need to attend more than one Basic SKYWARN Course, as the material covered is the same; however, it is required that you attend at least one Basic SKYWARN Course before taking the Advanced SKYWARN Course. These courses are two-way, meaning you will be able to interact with the meteorologist leading the training. You will be muted while training is in-progress, but you may use the built-in chat feature to ask questions.

To attend the Online Spotter Class:

1. Via the schedule below, register by clicking the link
corresponding to the class you’d like to attend.
2. Select the ‘join webinar’ button on the registration page or
in your confirmation email and follow the prompts.
3. Enjoy the class and ask questions.

To avoid being hurried, give yourself at least 15 minutes prior to the start of the class to complete the above process.

The current schedule is as follows:

Basic Class Monday, October 5 at 6:30 PM Class Registration Link:
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/1788173552682812176
Basic Class Wednesday, October 14 at 6:30 PM Class Registration Link:
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6143341309326840848
Basic Class Tuesday, October 20 at 1:00 PM Class Registration Link:
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/4047139983157959696
Basic Class Thursday, October 22 at 1:00 PM Class Registration Link:
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/4664293660805390608
Basic Class Thursday, November 5 at 6:30 PM Class Registration Link:
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/2873673004274522128
Advanced Class Tuesday, November 12 at 6:30 PM Class Registration Link:
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/861322633863105808

These classes will help you provide the NWS the vital “ground truth” information they need to verify radar indications, target their attention and help you relay reports in a clear manner to the NWS, either directly via the1-800-856-0758 number, online at https://www.weather.gov/bmx/submit_storm_report
or via chat or amateur radio. This knowledge helps Skywarn Net Control stations filter reports, by giving them knowledge of what reporting stations are trying to describe. This way they can tell if the report is a valid report, an invalid report by an overly excited operator or a valid, but, poorly described report, which without this knowledge would be mistakenly dismissed.

For further information on these classes visit: http://www.weather.gov/bmx/skywarnschedule

A PDF of the September 20, 2018 Basic presentation may be found at:
https://www.weather.gov/media/bmx/skywarn/BasicSpotterGSAT.pdf

A PDF of the April 4, 2019 Advanced presentation may be found at:
https://www.weather.gov/media/bmx/skywarn/Gerald_Satterwhite_Advanced_WEBPAGE.pdf

All NWS offices are having to deal with the turmoil caused by COVID-19. To keep abreast of the latest on their SKYWARN spotter classes, see the following links:

For information on classes being held by the Huntsville NWS office visit: https://www.weather.gov/hun/skywarn

For information on classes being held by the Mobile NWS office visit:
https://www.weather.gov/mob/spotter_training

For information on classes being held by the Tallahassee NWS office visit:
https://www.weather.gov/tae/taeskywarn

There are no reasons other than distance to why you can’t attend these classes if you wish. I attended an aviation weather seminar strictly out of curiosity and to gain knowledge, which even though hopefully I will never pilot a plane, the knowledge gain has proven very useful.

The NWS in Norman, OK have numerous YouTube videos worth exploring at:
https://www.youtube.com/user/NWSNorman/playlists

Other useful resources:

ABC33/40 Basic Storm Spotter Training
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_MzKUTfUKA

ABC 33/40 Storm Spotter Extreme Part 1 – April 2016
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOE69nsaKWE

ABC 33/40 Storm Spotter Extreme Part 2 – April 2016
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8hT7gCCQB0

ABC 33/40 Storm Spotter Extreme Part 3 – April 2016
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKHsAxNzqEM

For information on online training visit:
https://www.meted.ucar.edu/training_course.php?id=23

Note this online course IS NOT intended to replace the courses offered by the NWS offices. The local meteorologists will know factors and variations in the area microclimate that may need to be considered in assessing the observed phenomena. Consider this online course as supplemental information.

 

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Mark’s Almanac

The tenth Month, October is so named because it is the eighth month on the Roman calendar. To the Slavs of Eastern Europe it is called “yellow month,” from the fading of the leaves, while to the Anglo-Saxons it was known as Winterfylleth, because at this full moon (fylleth) winter was supposed to begin.

By whichever name you call it, October is a mild and dry month, the driest of the year, in fact. And, it is a sunny month with the amount of possible sunshine reaching the ground in the 60% or greater range.

Weather shifts from autumn pattern to revisiting the summer pattern and back again. The Azores-Bermuda High shifts eastward into the Atlantic, but, leaves weakened high pressure centers over the Virginias, which still try to block out approaching fronts.

October is usually a quite month for tornadoes, with a 40% decrease in activity. Nationwide an average of 28 tornadoes occur in October and those tornadoes are usually weak.

Our Hurricane threat continues, with hurricane activity increasing during the first half of the month, concentrating in the Caribbean, both from formation in the Caribbean and from the long track Cape Verde hurricanes, which enter the Caribbean. And, we still have the little “gifts” that the Gulf of Mexico occasionally will provide.

Florida, due to its low latitude, becomes especially vulnerable to hurricanes. Since 1851, Florida has endured 31 October hurricane landfalls, nearly triple the next highest state — Louisiana, which has had eight. Also, about 60 percent of all U.S. hurricanes that made landfall after September 26 have done so in Florida. One factor being the cold fronts of Fall penetrating the Gulf and then deflecting storms towards the West coast of Florida.

Luckily after the second half of the month the activity will begin a steady decrease.

28% of the year’s hurricanes occur in October.

From 1851 – 2019 there have been 363 Tropical Storms and 213 hurricanes, 58 of which made landfall in the United States.

Some notable October hurricanes are:

The Great Hurricane of 1780, also known as Huracán San Calixto, the Great Hurricane of the Antilles, and the 1780 Disaster, the deadliest Atlantic hurricane, which killed between 20,000 to 22, 000 people in the Lesser Antilles as it passed through from October 10 – 16, 1780. It is possible that it had winds in excess of 200 MPH when it reached Barbados.

Hurricane Hazel struck the Carolinas in 1954. Weather satellite did not yet exist and the Hurricane Hunters were unable to observe the core of the storm until it neared land on October 15. Hazel made landfall just west of the North Carolina/South Carolina border slightly northeast of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina with a Category 4 intensity of 130 mph.

Hurricane Wilma still holds the record as the most intense tropical cyclone ever recorded in the Atlantic Basin. In 24 hours Wilma went from a Category 1 storm on October 18 to a Category 5 storm with 185 MPH Maximum Sustained Winds. She weakened to Category 4 and struck the Yucatan, then restrengthened and struck Cape Romano Florida as a Category 3 storm on October 24, 2005.

Hurricane Mitch became a Category 1 hurricane on October 24, 1998 and within 48 hours grew to Category 5 intensity, and though he weakened to Category 1 before making landfall, he became the second deadliest hurricane on record killing over 11,000, with nearly that number missing in Central America due to intense rainfall and mudslides. He would eventually reach the United States making landfall near Naples Florida on November 5.

Hurricane Michael formed near the Yucatan Peninsula on October 7, 2018 and in 72 hours grew from a Tropical Depression to a Category 5 hurricane striking struck Mexico Beach Florida.

Beware of October hurricanes, for as Wilma, Mitch and Michael have demonstrated, they can experience explosive growth.

 

October Tropical Cyclone Breeding Grounds

This is the month for Alabama’s version of “Indian Summer’s” arrival.

Technically speaking Indian Summer doesn’t occur until “Squaw Winter” or the first frost arrives, but exact date when Indian Summer arrives varies with latitude.

We live in Alabama, and while the earliest frosts have been known to occur by October 17, they usually wait until November. So, we, in our milder climate call the first warm up after the first cool down “Indian Summer”.

The Yellow Giant Sulphur Butterflies are very noticeable as they continue to drift South-Southeast on their migration towards Florida. They prefer red things & if you have red flowers they will zero in on them.

The Monarchs also will be seen gliding by in their migration towards Central America.

Fall colors will become prominent & by late October & early November the leaves will be reaching their peak fall colors.

Days rapidly grow shorter as the Sun’s angle above the noonday horizon steadily decreases from 53.2 degrees at the beginning of the month to 42.3 degrees at the month’s end. Daylight decreases from 11 hours 50 minutes on October 1 to 10 hours 51 minutes on October 31.

Sunrise and sunset times for Birmingham are:

October 1 Sunrise 5:41 AM Sunset 6:32 PM
October 15 Sunrise 6:51 AM Sunset 6:14 PM
October 31 Sunrise 7:05 AM Sunset 5:56 PM

Looking skyward, at the beginning of the month, the Sun, magnitude -26.7 is in Virgo.

Mercury, magnitude 0.0 on Virgo, is at his highest point in the western sky on October 1, when he will be 25.8 degrees from the Sun. This is the best time to view Mercury since it will be at its highest point above the horizon in the evening sky. Look for the planet low in the western sky just after sunset.

Viewed with a telescope, he will appear half lit, like a last quarter moon, or reach “dichotomy”, on October 6.

As the month progresses he will sink lower and lower towards the horizon and then slip beyond and will pass between the Sun and the Earth on October 25.

Venus, magnitude -4.1 in Leo, rises two hours before sunrise in the east-northeast and shines prominently during the dawn.

On October 2 at and 3rd Venus will pass ever so closely by Regulus, which at magnitude +1.3 is the brightest star in Leo. The closest approach will be at 23:40 UTC, which unfortunately is 6:40 PM CDT, but the pairing will still be a good early morning treat.

Venus leaves Leo and enters Virgo on October 22 and will reach her closest approach to the sun, or “Perihelion” on October 30, when she will be 66.7 million miles from the Sun.

In a telescope Venus is a 70% lit gibbous globe.

Earth, magnitude -4.0, as viewed from the Sun, is in Pisces.

Mars, magnitude -2.4 in Pisces, will pass just north of the Moon at 21:21 UTC or 4:21 PM CDT, just too early for us to see in Alabama, on October 3, as Mars will rise at twilight, but the pair will remain a great sight after the darkness of night arrives. It will also prove that Mars will not be the same size of the Full Moon at his closest approach to Earth, as the perennial internet meme proclaims. If you were at the southern tip of South America, Mars will pass directly behind the Moon.

Mars and the Earth will be at their closest distance to each other as Earth passes by at 14:19 UTC or 9:19 CDT on October 6, when we will be 38,558,243 miles apart. His face will be fully illuminated and will be visible all night long. Though close approaches occur yearly, this one is special in that this is the largest he will appear until 2035.

Mars is experiencing Winter in its Northern hemisphere and Summer in its Southern hemisphere. The planet’s Southern Pole is tipped towards the Earth at an angle of about 20º, giving us a good view of its Southern Polar Cap

Big, bright Mars will be directly opposite of the Sun, appropriately called “Opposition” on October 13.

During the close approach of Mars in October 1938, a Martian invasion force arrived dropping saucers all over the world and decimating the population of New York City and others with poisonous gas. The combined military forces of the planet were ineffective at combatting these invaders, and they were only stopped because they had no immunity to Earthly viruses.

Or, so Orson Welles said in his War Of The Worlds radio broadcast of October 30, 1938,

In 2020 we don’t have to worry about any Martian invasion. They are afraid of Covid-19 too.

Dwarf Planet Ceres shines at magnitude 7.7 in Pisces Austrinus, The Southern Fish.

Jupiter, magnitude –2.4, in Sagittarius, shines in the Southern sky during dusk and early evening and moves to the southwest as twilight fades away.

Saturn, magnitude +0.5 in Sagittarius is near Jupiter and they will be creeping ever closer to each other as fall progresses. They will be just 0.1 degree apart on December 21st low in the twilight at the dawn of winter.
Uranus, magnitude 5.7, in Aries, is well up in the east by 10 or 11 PM CDT. It’s highest in the south around 2 AM.
The blue-green planet will be at its closest approach to Earth or “Opposition” on October 31 and his face will be fully illuminated by the Sun. It will be brighter than any other time of the year and will be visible all night long.

This is the best time to view Uranus, but, due to its distance, it will only appear as a tiny blue-green dot in all but the most powerful telescopes.

Neptune (magnitude 7.8, in Aquarius) is higher in the south-southeast at that time around 10 PM.

Dwarf Planet Pluto, with his five moons shines at a dim 14.3 in Sagittarius.

Dwarf Planet 136108 Haumea, its ring and moons Hiʻiaka and Namaka, shines at a faint magnitude of 17.3 in Bootes.

Dwarf Planet 136472 Makemake with his moon faintly shines at magnitude 17.0 in Coma Berenices.

Dwarf Planet 136199 Eris and her moon Dysnomia is barely visible in the most powerful telescopes at magnitude 19.0 in Cetus the Sea Monster

October’s first Full Moon will occur October 1. The Moon will be directly opposite the Earth from the Sun and will be fully illuminated as seen from Earth. This phase occurs at 21:06 UTC or 4:06 AM CDT. This full moon was known by early Native American tribes as the Full Hunters Moon because at this time of year the leaves are falling and the game is fat and ready to hunt. This moon has also been known as the Travel Moon and the Blood Moon. This full moon is also known as the Harvest Moon. The Harvest Moon is the full moon that occurs closest to the September equinox each year.

Also since this full moon occurs near Apogee, or the Moon’s farthest point from Earth, this will be a Micromoon. A Micromoon is the opposite of a Supermoon. Where a Supermoon appears slightly larger than normal, a Micromoon appears smaller.

The Moon will be at Apogee or its farthest distance from Earth on October 3, when she will be 252,475 miles from Earth.

The Draconid Meteor Shower will peak on October 7. This minor shower is produced by dust grains left behind by Comet 21P Giacobini-Zinner, which was discovered in 1900. This shower, which runs from October 6 – 10, is unusual in that it is best observed in the early evening, instead of the early morning hours as with most other showers.

The last quarter moon will set shortly after midnight leaving fairly dark skies for observing. Best viewing will be in the early evening from a dark location far away from city lights. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Draco, but can appear anywhere in the sky.

The Last Quarter Moon occurs October 9.

New Moon will occur October 16. The Moon will be located on the same side of the Earth as the Sun and will not be visible in the night sky. This phase occurs at 2:32 PM CDT or 19:32 UTC. This is the best time of the month to observe faint objects such as galaxies and star clusters because there is no moonlight to interfere.

The Moon will be at Perigee or its closest approach to Earth on October 16, when she will be 221,775 miles from Earth.

The Orionid Meteor Shower peaks on October 21 & 22. The Orionids is an average shower producing up to 20 meteors per hour at its peak This shower, which runs from October 2 to November 7, is produced by the broad debris trail of Halley’s Comet. The light from the First Quarter moon will not be major issue and this should be a good show. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Orion, but can appear anywhere in the sky.

First Quarter Moon will occur October 23.

Southern Taurids Meteor Shower occurs October 29 & 30. The Southern Taurids is a long-running minor meteor shower producing only about 5-10 meteors per hour. This shower is, however, famous for producing a higher than normal percentage of bright fireballs. The Southern Taurids is produced by debris left behind by Comet 2P Encke. The shower runs annually from September 10 to November 20. It peaks this year on the night of the 29th and morning of the 30th. The nearly full moon will block out all but the brightest meteors this year. If you are patient, you may still be able to catch a few good ones. Best viewing will be just after midnight from a dark location far away from city lights. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Taurus, but can appear anywhere in the sky.

The Moon will be at Apogee or its farthest distance from Earth on October 10, when she will be 252,521 miles from Earth.

October will have two Full Moons. The second Full Moon will occur at 14:51 UTC or 9:51 AM CDT.
A second full moon in the same month is sometimes referred to as a Blue Moon. This rare calendar event only occurs every few months, giving rise to the term “once in a Blue Moon”. This, as with the Full Moon on October 1, is also Micromoon. So in October we have two Full Moons, a Harvest Moon, a Blue Moon and two Micromoons.

What else could you expect? It is 2020, after all.

If you have two New Moons in a month, or to be persnickety, “the third New Moon in a season with four New Moons”, the second New Moon is called a “Black Moon”. The next Black Moon will occur January 31, 2022.

This is the time of year when the rich star clouds of the Milky Way in Cygnus crosses the zenith, looking like a ghostly band overhead in the hour after nightfall is complete. The Milky Way now rises straight up from the southwest horizon, passes overhead, and runs straight down to the northeast. Later at midnight, Orion the Hunter and the stars of winter rise over the eastern horizon, reminding us to enjoy the mild weather while it is here, for this season, as all seasons, is but a fleeting moment in the never ending waltz of time.

4284 planets beyond our solar system have now been confirmed as of September 24, per NASA’s Exoplanet Archive http://exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu/.

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This month’s meeting will be on September 13 at 7PM.

The meeting will be done remotely as was last month’s meeting.

Details and instructions will be issued as the time nears.
Hope to “see” you there Hope to see you there!
Mark / WD4NYL
Editor
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