Officially Spring in the Pacific Northwest
Seattle Space Needle Reflection Photo by J. R. Hudson
At the start of spring (spring vernal equinox), day and night are approximately 12 hours long (at the equatorial plane) and the Sun is at the midpoint of the sky. Our north pole tilts towards the Sun. Meteorological determination of spring is calculated according to when the sun passes through the equatorial plane. When going from winter to spring, the sun is moving north; as soon as the sun crosses the equator, we call it spring (northern hemisphere).
Good times ahead!
Source: http://wiki.answers.com
Three Sheets Northwest – About Boating in the Pacific Northwest
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Sailboat at Rest, Westsound, Orcas Island, San Juan Islands
“My favorite Northwest boating destination is the San Juan Islands, because somehow I am drawn, impelled, pulled by some unknown force located there – perhaps a fantasy almost realized but yet, not quite. I try to shake it, even neglecting these islands for years, but alas, when I’m back, and I always seem to come back, the islands continue to exude their charm, their beauty.” – J. R. Hudson
Our Imperfect Sun
Our sun, our brightest star, is imperfect. From the time I was a teen, and well into my twenties, I would shed the long pants for shorts and go shirtless with the strong intention of absorbing as much of our Sun’s “rays” as the time I had available would allow. Well, it is a good thing that I didn’t have enough time to complete my intentions because that could have killed me by the age I am today.
I am absolutely sure that our skin has become acclimated to the sun to a large degree over time. But, there is a limit to what almost all of us can take in exposure before skin aberrations occur as a result. And, potentially, a form of killer skin cancer. I am aware, also, of electromagnetic radiation which emanate from our sun during periods of solar flare hyper-activity.
So, with much interest, I searched for information about the recent solar flares and found information from NASA that we are nearing an apex of an eleven-year cycle of increased solar activity.
NASA states that it “looks like the new solar cycle is beginning to ramp up. The sun emitted its first X-class flare in more than four years on February 14 at 8:56 p.m. EST.” Source: NASA http://bit.ly/g4qeVY
The peak of the eleven-year solar cycle should last through 2012. Large solar flares can disrupt satellite communications, cause wide area power grids to spike and potentially burn out, and produce strong Northern Lights that can be seen in the lower latitudes including our Pacific Northwest.
Peace Lights Carillon Point
Peace Lights - Carillon Point
A Unique and Rare Lunar Eclipse Visible Tonight (weather permitting)
Lunar Eclipse
This lunar eclipse happens to be on the day of a solstice, the first day of winter for the Northern Hemisphere and the first day of summer for the Southern Hemisphere. The last time a lunar eclipse happened on a solstice was 372 years ago in the days of Galileo. A solstice/lunar eclipse is not expected to be seen again until 2094. This will be a once-in-a-lifetime event for most of us!
Sources: U.S. Naval Observatory’s Geoff Chester in speaking with NASA, and NASA via CNN
Winter Weather Advisory for Seattle Area
The Weather UndergroundIssued by The National Weather Service, Seattle/Tacoma, WA, 9:37 am PST, Mon., Nov. 22, 2010
* TIMING… BANDS OF SNOW WILL INCREASE THROUGH THE EARLY AFTERNOON AND CONTINUE INTO THE EVENING HOURS. THE SNOW WILL END LATER THIS EVENING FROM THE NORTH… BUT SOME DRIFTING OF THE SNOW IS LIKELY TONIGHT AS NORTHERLY WINDS INCREASE TO 20 TO 30 MPH AND GUSTS TO 40 MPH.
* ACCUMULATIONS… EXPECT 2 TO 6 INCH AMOUNTS. SNOWFALL ACCUMULATIONS WILL BE QUITE VARIABLE AROUND THE AREA WITH HEAVIEST AMOUNTS OCCURRING CLOSER TO THE CASCADE FOOTHILLS AND IN LOCALIZED BANDS AROUND THE CENTRAL PUGET SOUND AREA.
Gaff-Rigged Working Sailboat “Admirable”
Admirable
Admirable was built by the George Kneass boatyard of San Francisco about 1900 for the Naknek Cannery in Bristol Bay, Alaska. It had a crew of two and could carry three tons of salmon. She was used as a sail-power fishing boat on the bays and rivers of the Pacific Coast from around 1900 to the 1960s. She was restored at the Center for Wooden Boats with funding provided by the Ted Frantz family, Paul G. Allen Charitable Foundation and King County Landmarks and Heritage Program. You may likely find her these days laden with local sailors out for a free day of sailing on Lake Union.
Source: The Center for Wooden Boats, Lake Union, Seattle, Washington
Wikipedia about Naknek, Alaska
Ice Wine
Eroica 2006 Reisling Ice Wine from Chateau Ste. Michelle
One of the rarest of the world’s wines is known as “ice wine” (German translation “Eiswein”). This wine is divinely sweet, not a typical normal sweetness, but a really rich sweetness and flavor which are brought on by the defensive process within a grape when it meets it’s first hard freeze. It has been said that ice wine is “the nectar of the gods”.
Natural conditions must be just right to produce grapes that will result in quality ice wine. The precise moment of harvest is extremely important to determine. After a warm period, when there is a sudden frozen night, harvesters must head out to the vineyards in the early hours of the morning to pluck these grapes. No time to spare. The grapes, when they are in this quick freeze condition, are low-yielding. As a result, it can take a whole vine to produce one bottle of ice wine.
In our own Pacific Northwest, the ice wine to be found will likely be from the Riesling grape. It is typically sold in half-size bottles due to the rareness of the rareness of the harvest.
Washington’s Chateau Ste. Michelle winery states they have harvested ice wine only six times in their 40-year history. Ice wine is very expensive, but worth it to try. I have, and I agree with the majority of others who have tried it and commented – ice wine is extremely good, tasty, divine!
Ice Wine on Wikipedia
Pacific Northwest | J R Hudson 