We begin our look at November with Venus, Jupiter, and Saturn. Venus continues to dominate the SW sky at dusk. With the period of twilight lengthening throughout the fall, Venus will appear 3 degrees higher by the end of the month with a setting time that will average about 2.6 hours after sunset. Viewed […]
The crew at the West Coast Bureau sent me a copy of one of William L. Sullivan’s numerous books about hiking the great Oregonian out-of-doors. To best describe Sullivan’s passion for the topic of hiking in the wilderness, let me offer the following summary from the back cover of his 1988 opus Listening for […]
One of my favorite displays at the Michigan Iron Industry Museum outside of Negaunee is housed behind the door of an old bank vault. There is a graph inside showing how much money was generated by all of the big mineral rushes that swept this young nation. Manifest Destiny compelled the government to expand the […]
COME TOGETHER as only Ringo could orchestrate it . . .
On his fifteenth birthday, March 1, 1959, Roger Daltrey was sent home from school and told to never return. The headmaster, Mr. Kibblewhite, gave him a parting shot he would never forget: “You’ll never make anything of your life, Daltrey.” Roger could only think to himself, “Thanks a lot, Mr. Kibblewhite,” as he headed home […]
If the statute of limitations for trespassing is six years (and yes, I looked it up for the sake of accuracy), it is probably okay for me to tell this story nearly fifty years after the fact. Sticking with first names will suffice to tell the following tale so nobody will be put on […]
October looks to be an excellent month for planetary viewing. Just to make sure our lunar companion does not get short shrift, we will start this AstroCal with a little about the Hunter’s Moon which will take place on October 20. According to the Farmers’ Almanac, the convention of naming seasonal Moons in North America […]
What more can be said about the year 1971 that I have not already covered? As a 1971 Marquette Senior High School graduate, I remain fond of that particular year. It would take a full page of entries to catalogue the number of FTV’s that have mentioned happenings from one of my favorite years. Enter […]
Model Rocketry became our hobby when my brother and I witnessed one of our Norway Avenue neighbors launch a Centuri brand model rocket in the field across from our house. We dove in feet first and spent five years poking holes in the sky before Ron graduated from college and left for a year […]
From the Vaults: That Wild and Crazy Guy Elvis hit the nail on the head back in 1971. He told Steve Martin, “Son, you have an ob-leek sense of humor.” Oblique can be added to the long list of words used to describe Martin but the one at the top would undoubtedly have to […]