Deathwing!

Early this morning Edmontonians woke up to an incredibly orange sky that prompted many comments of the apocalyptic variety on twitter. It's hard to tell from the pictures but the air itself appeared to have an orange glow to it, everything in my bedroom when I first woke up looked orange but our window is west facing. I've never seen anything quite like it.

These pictures were taken around 5:00am in west Edmonton. You can see my other shots HERE.

HAPPY WINTER SOLSTICE!

Total Lunar Eclipse

Winter Solstice Sunset

Solstice Moonrise (over WEM)

Red Sky in the Morn...

Edmonton Sunrise Oct 19 2010

Looks Like the Summer is Over...

It seems even the trees have given up on summer

In the northern hemisphere summer ends September 23 at 3:09am GMT and then we begin the season of autumn. However, lately in Edmonton it has felt as if summer might already be over - particularly disappointing since many who live here might remark it hardly seems summer ever got started at all.

As much as I look forward to transitioning to fall (and the wonderful colours it brings), it necessarily comes at the expense of summer and sometimes I have a hard time forgiving it for that. I live for the summer time, daydreaming of summer days is what gets me through the winters here.

Baby, It's Cold Outside...

Here is a graph showing the "14 Day Trend" for Edmonton, Alberta:


The white line is our historical average daily high temperature (around -5°C for this time period). The yellow line is our projected/expected daily HIGH temperatures... Looks like starting Friday the temperature is set to plummet into the realm of -30°C and colder. Time to buy a winter jacket?

UPDATE: Edmonton was the coldest place in North America Saturday night and the second coldest in the world! We registered a new record low of -46°C (-59°C with the windchill). You can read more here: Only Siberia Was Colder (Edmonton Sun 14 Dec 2009)

Happy first full day of Fall Edmonton!

I've done my best to try and enjoy this day - lunch on a patio, ice cream with my hubby and BBQ with family to come. This is gorgeous weather, who knows how much longer it will last? Seize the Day!

Dreaming of Spring Time

Spring blossoms much earlier in BC

Seems like we will be in the grips of -27°C to -34°C weather for the next little while, with more snow (if that's even possible). I am sure hoping this counts as "in like a lion" because I could sure go for the "out like a lamb" part of March.

Why is the Sky Red?

During the day the sun warms the surface of the Earth and creates wind which lifts dust particles into the air and upper atmosphere. The intense red and orange hues of the sky at sunset are mainly caused by the scattering of sunlight across these particulates floating around. This phenomenon can be further explained through scientific understanding as the process of Discrete Dipole Approximation, the Mie Theory or in some cases by the Rayleigh Scattering of sunlight by air molecules rather than dust particles (Rayleigh is responsible for why the sky is blue).

Sunset goes through many stages of brilliance as the sun disappears. Some of them most intense moments only last for seconds - after I had got back in the car from taking these photos all of the dark reds and oranges had already faded. You can see more of my sunset and sunrise pictures here.

Here Comes the Fall

First Red Leaf of the Season

Snapped this on one of my walks in Point Pleasant Park in Halifax. I was honestly surprised to see a red leaf on the ground so soon, but I guess the summer actually is over. I love the colours of Fall so I always look forward to it, even if it is with a slight bit of sadness that I bid goodbye to summer.

As another sign of summer ending, I started my new job today. I am really excited about it and enjoyed myself today. Can't wait for tomorrow!

Our "Near Tornado Experience"

Kids splashing as the storm rolls in

We got more than we bargained for when decided to enjoy the hot weather at Gull Lake (Aspen Beach Provincial Park) this afternoon. By the time we made it to the lake it was obvious a storm was rolling in... but we had enough time to enjoy the water and what was left of the sun.

Then, as the storm moved over the lake, Duncan and I looked up at a strange rolling cloud formation directly above us. "Are clouds supposed to do that?" he asked. I said something like "I think that's what is called rotation" and we agreed we should be leaving.

Before we could even get out of the water a great roaring occurred - a swirling wind cloud kicking up dirt, tree parts and other debris just off the beach - I've never heard anything like it. I yelled for the kids to run, but it was unnecessary. We all made it into the car just before the view was obscured by dirt and sand. We drove away, still wet and shoeless, eager to leave the adverse weather far behind.

We stopped briefly at a roadside pull out on the highway to change clothes and grab towels etc, but the wind caught up with us and we set out once again for home. We made it back to Edmonton a few minutes before the storm did.

Spectacular Summer Sunset

We get some amazing sunsets here in Edmonton in the summer but not often are they so deeply vibrant. This sunset in particular has had people talking for days, and I was lucky enough to have the camera in hand to capture the most vivid moment of the evening.

One Extreme to Another

Feels like 33°C! Tonight it will cool off to 27°C, which likely means I will be sitting outside again watching Jupiter and the Northern Lights at 3:00am instead of sleeping! However, I like this weather better than our coldest winter temperature last year, I am definitely a sun worshipper. Duncan said it best on his twitter - "Todays Forecast: 31°C; Chance of showers: 0%; Chance of work: 0%; Chance of Beer outside: 96%."

Make that 100%!

Gimme Shelter or I'm Gonna Fade Away

When Cyclone Nargis hit Myanmar on May 2 it hurled a 12 foot high wall of sea water, called a storm surge, 40 kms inland. Winds up to 129 mph flattened the lives it found in its path.

Today the death toll looks likely to exceed 100,000 people – and the storm has left an estimated one million people homeless. Many people do not have water, food prices (where food is available) have risen 300% and further deaths from disease and starvation are inevitable, especially without help.

The International Federation of Red Cross has launched a preliminary emergency appeal for $6 million. All funds raised will be used to provide survivors with basic supplies, emergency shelter, and to ensure people have access to health care and clean water. I have chosen to support the Red Cross because they already have volunteers on the ground in Myanmar and are able to get the aid directly to the areas that need it without interference from the Junta.

You can donate as well – there is no amount too small! You can select to have your donation ear marked by selecting "Myanmar Cyclone" in the online option or by writing it on your cheque.

Online: Red Cross Online Donation Page

Phone: 1-800-418-1111

Mail:
Canadian Red Cross National Office
170 Metcalfe Street, Suite 300
Ottawa, Ontario, K2P 2P2
Cheques payable to the Canadian Red Cross

In Person (Edmonton): 9931 106 Street NW, Edmonton (click here for map)

A Matter of Offsetting

It took me a while to warm up to the idea of paying to offset carbon emissions that we create while taking trips. I'm not really sure why though, since we do everything we otherwise can to decrease our carbon footprint; I think my skepticism revolved around an unregulated market and the wide variety of companies claiming to provide this service. It is certainly Buyer Beware - and I was specifically interested in Canadian green energy investment or reforestation.

After some research I have found a company I am happy with - ZeroFootprint. They are a Canadian NFP (certified by ISO 14064-2) that helps sustain and support Canadian forests by planting trees and fighting deforestation, biodiversity loss, and watershed degradation. I found them via AirCanada who partners with them to offset air travel emissions and I recommend anyone considering offsetting check them out.

On the Razor’s Edge

I first became aware of increasing contrail activity by accident after I unwittingly stumbled across a web culture built on the premise that "the government" is using airplanes to slowly poison us all.

Chemtrails they call them, Aerosol Crimes, or even the "attempt to implement the New World Order," depending on how deep you look. There is some horrendously outrageous stuff on those webpages.

I easily dismissed this as a conspiracy theory and even laughed about how crazy it was.

But then, one day as I walked down the road noticing many contrails criss-crossed in the sky, I started to think about it. I realized that I honestly couldn't recall ever having seen contrails stay in the sky like they do today.

So I started to wonder if the conspiracy theorists were on to something - not that they were right, rather that they had simply noticed something out of the ordinary before I had. It’s been known to happen - once in a while.

Reading Discovery News today I have found that this is indeed a relatively new climate phenomenon that scientists known as "contrail researchers" at places like NASA study. Their research regarding these "contrail outbreaks" and "contrail clusters" has been published in a recent issue of the Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology.

Apparently colder air combined with an increased humidity at higher altitudes is producing contrails that persist rather than just evaporate like they have in the past. These contrails eventually expand to form an artificial layer of cloud cover which the scientists study to determine if they play a role in global warming, or visa versa.

Sorry for taking away the mystery chemtrail freaks, but all other things being equal the simplest solution is usually the right answer.

Feels Like -46°C

On the radio this morning they advised everyone who could stay home to stay home - and those that couldn't to "pack a survival kit."

Goodbye Summer...

How beautiful the leaves grow old.
- John Burroughs

Elizabeth May on "Russian Roulette"

In describing our continued dependence on cars and oil Elizabeth May, leader of Canada's Green Party, consistently warns we are "playing Russian Roulette with our life support system." I don't disagree; as a species we have certainly historically exhibited a lack of proper concern in such matters.

May implies the majority of the population are blissfully ignorant, suggesting that we are happy to consider climate change mostly as a subjective topic and not one neccessarily deserving our immediate attention. "If you were in France in the heat wave of 2003, watching the ice melt in the Western Canadian Arctic, or the water rise in New Orleans in August 2005, or British Columbia in the fires of 2004, you might well conclude that things are already pretty dangerous," states May in a recent Killam lecture.

For May to get a car when she herself knows/believes/has seen that these things are occurring boggles me.

May preaches that the planet needs to see carbon reductions of 80% by the year 2050 – which could truly only come about by an astronomical undertaking of people willing to make significant lifestyle changes. Yet for the sake of her own convenience and her political aspirations, she is now willing to become a carbon contributor rather than making a far greater statement by remaining carless and proving that it can be done successfully (albeit with some effort).

As a family we make a lot of sacrifices to live as much of a carbon neutral lifestyle as possible. One of them is that we haven't had a car in over 12 years.

I am certainly one of the early people to come to the notion that, regardless of the actual cause(s), our climate is changing and not in a positive manner. Not wanting to contribute further to this has been our motivation for a few simple lifestyle changes (recycling, water and electricity conservation, utilizing mass transit, living in a townhouse rather than a house, for example).

But the reality is that it is inconvenient. We are sacrificing.

And why? Because every little bit helps - and as more and more people make changes that will help too.

Elizabeth May has cancelled out our contribution towards a carbon neutral society. She may as well have bought a Hummer for all the real difference it makes now, optics and perception being everything in politics. The idea that not even the leader of the Green Party can live a car free life is somewhat demotivating, unpalatable and disheartening.

Screw it, I am getting a car.

As long as the map stays yellow its all good!

It's 3:44 am and it's still 24°C (with a relative humidity of 57%) so it's little wonder I can't sleep. The day temperatures were 32°C with little relief, so it's also no surprise that we have a severe thunderstorm rolling in. Environment Canada has issued a severe weather warning (not as bad as a "watch") - but with a command to monitor the weather and tot ake immediate safety precautions if "threatening weather" approaches.

The crazy winds and rain are upon us and the lightening is fairly impressive to watch. Not having anything else to do at the moment I did cover my flowers (to protect against the large hail) but if the winds get any more aggressive it might just blow the cover away.

I noticed there is a family sleeping outside in their car. In the event this turns into a Tornado Warning my basement might be a little fuller tonight...

UPDATE: 4:20am and the storm has calmed down quite a bit and so far no hail, which makes me happy. The temperature is also dropping (almost 5°C so far) so I am thinking of heading back to bed to enjoy the coolness that is 20°C. Oh, and the family drove away at some point during the deluge, hopefully to find a hotel!

In Vegas for July 4th Celebrations!

July 4th Decor at the Bellagio

With the lure of Las Vegas strong in our hearts it was just a matter of time before we returned and - as I write this - we are day four into a five day return trip... a trip that has been fabulous, as it should be, and very, very HOT. I rationally know that the desert in July should be hot - but I mean, it's hot even for Vegas standards - about 46 degrees Celsius (about 116 Fahrenheit)! I don't really know how to describe how hot it feels - but lets say it's like being in an oven - the heat comes from the ground as well as above and the sweat literally evaporates before it reaches your skin. According to the Las Vegas News there have been just four days on record when the mercury has climbed to 116 degrees or higher, with the all-time local record being 117 degrees Fahrenheit. Baby, it's hot here!

We have loads of pictures to post when we return, and until then I will mention a few highlights of the trip so far: Phantom of the Opera (was brilliant), Jubilee (was perfect as always), Rollercoaster at NYNY (a unique way to see the strip), the Hoover Dam (was dam impressive), Hooters pool side bar (was too long in the sun for my poor, red, Duncan) and TRANSFORMERS (which was awesome - especially after just standing on the Hoover Dam).

Tonight we are heading to Freemont Street and then up the Stratosphere revolving restaurant - Top of the World - to watch July 4th fireworks and celebrate our wedding anniversary.

Happy 4th of July, Las Vegas!