“After 50 days of drought and clear skies, one more wouldn’t have been too much to ask!”
That was the rueful remark of the Flamsteed Society, of Greenwich, when canceling the observing session for last night’s lunar eclipse.
In my part of southern England, we expected to step out into the gardens that make a natural sky theater, sloping down to Lyme Bay. But the day had pan-cloud – a term I think of for smooth cloud that spans almost without feature to all horizons. Some bluish chinks opened before sunset, and I went out anyway. A few others were wondering where southeast was and whether a reddened Moon could be behind the grayness. In other parts of Britain, lightning was knocking out railway signal stations.
Day after the eclipse, clear skies are returning. The heatwave may resume and worsen in August.
It’s due to a stalling, unusually prolonged, of the jet stream that divides latitudinal cells of the planet’s atmosphere and brings cool air to Europe. And this is a predictable consequence of global heating, as a consortium of climate scientists has declared.
Here in San Francisco my skywatching friends are grumbling about clouds preventing us from seeing Mars. But during the summer clear skies only happen during heat waves. I won’t complain about an onshore flow that keeps our daytime high temperature around 25 C, when inland areas have been suffering through 40-plus-degree days for weeks, and huge wildfires are popping up faster than the firefighters can put them out. Three firefighters have died so far this summer. It’s bad.
I loved your last post about Mars and the lunar eclipse. I watched bits of the SLOOH live feed of the eclipse at wark yesterday. That was some consolation for being on the wrong side of the planet.
I just received a report from a friend in Germany who said it was phenomenal. He overheard a conversation from his neighbors who explained the redness of the moon was caused by reflected light from Mars. He added a big HAH! As if.
well, I missed this one, being on the other side of the pond, but we’re due for one next year in January. Bundle up.
Of course! And darn it ….
Next time!