When Sun Rays Crown Thy Pine Clad Hills

Friday nights are usually reserved for staying up late, sipping on a few sociables and watching a movie. However, this past Friday night was a little different. Bedtime was 10:30 and the alarm was set for 3 am. What in God’s name are we getting up for at that hour, you ask? Simple answer: C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE). Just recently discovered back in March of this year, comet NEOWISE can be seen in the early morning sky with the naked eye just above the horizon. In the coming days it will move to the evening sky and be visible near the Big Dipper. So, we are keeping our fingers crossed for clear night skies for the next little while at least. That’s the extent of my knowledge on the subject. If you’re looking for any further details on NEOWISE feel free to forward your questions to John. Remember, he’s the one that knows the astronomy side of things, I’m the one who takes the pretty pictures of it! 😉

Anyhoo, by the time I went to bed it was raining and I figured there was no way it would be clear by the time 3 am rolled around. I didn’t want to get my hopes up that the skies would be clear because that’s just the way things go here in Newfoundland. Feels like I had just closed my eyes when I was awakened by CBC blaring on the radio alarm clock (640 on your am dial). We got up, looked out the window and lo and behold it was clear as a bell! Got dressed, woke up Charlotte, grabbed our gear and off to Signal Hill we went. As we were driving up the hill towards the parking lot John exclaimed he could see the comet! I was skeptical, figuring it was a squashed bug on the window or something. But sure enough I saw it too. Then I started getting nervous and anxious. “What if I can’t get my camera settings right? What if the comet disappears? What if it clouds over? Why is it taking so long to drive up this damn hill?”, I thought. When we reached the parking lot there were a few other astronomy enthusiasts and photographers already there set up. I, too, got set up and snapped off a few pictures. Once I knew I had a couple decent shots I realized I could take my time and play around with settings, location etc. Here are the results of all that anxiety.

Hope you enjoyed my snaps. It was such an amazing night/morning I felt it deserved it’s own blog. Don’t forget, over the coming days and weeks make sure to keep your eyes to the skies because you never know what wonders will be revealed!

We love thee, smiling land.

 

 

Until Next Time,

Andrea In Torbay