2017 Astronomy Programs at Great Basin National Park

 Last night Desert Girl and I went up to the Astronomy program at Great Basin National Park. For the months of April and May, they are held at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday nights. They will be held three nights a week after Memorial Day weekend (I believe--check with the park at 775-234-7331 to be entirely sure) through Labor Day weekend.

One of the things we learned at the program was what a.m. and p.m. mean. I guess I hadn't really thought about it much. Ante meridian is Latin for before midday and post meridian is after midday. We also learned about Pope Gregory wiping out a week in October back about 852 and then the institution of the leap day so that wouldn't have to happen again. Except leap day isn't celebrated every 100 years, so it didn't happen in February 1900. But it did happen in February 2000 because every thousand years they need to put it back in. And sometimes there's a leap second, like in June 2015. Or something like that. But don't worry, the atomic clock is accurate to 1 second in 30 million years, based on the cesium atom. I think that's right. I wasn't exactly taking notes, but it was interesting.

Then it was time to line up at the telescopes and look at the night skies. There was a good turnout, as it was a clear night, and somewhat warm (above freezing, anyway). Probably about 40 people were there. It was cold enough that Desert Girl and I had on winter coats and winter boots and had two blankets and were still a bit chilled, but we were better prepared than most.

Desert Girl was a good sport while I took some photos of telescopes. One person had his own positioned near the Lehman Caves Visitor Center, which was lit up in red to preserve our night vision.  The blue line is the glow-in-the dark paint along the curb.

We could find the Big Dipper easily, with the handle arcing to the bright star Arcturus, which Ranger Steve was pointing out. Through the telescope our first object was even easier to find--the moon. With a crescent, it made for some really great shadows.

Then we lined up again to take a look at Jupiter and four moons. I was also able to see these through our binoculars (binoculars, lawn chairs, and blankets are great things to bring to an astronomy program, as well as red flashlights).

Then it was on to the M3 globular cluster. It looked like a big fuzzy spot, even though it's made up of 500,000 stars. Why fuzzy? Well, it's over 30,000 light years away! There's nothing like looking up into the heavens to help put life into perspective.

Desert Girl had seen enough at this point, so we left, but other folks stayed on, looking at more amazing things. We hope to go to more astronomy programs this year, the kids really enjoy them, and it's always great to spend more time looking up at the stars and learning more about them.

Nevada Northern Railway--A Ride in the Engine

This is the last of a five-part series about the Nevada Northern Railway Winter Steam Photo Shoot Spectacular. Check out posts about Day 1 (Friday afternoon and evening), Day 2 (Saturday), around the Enginehouse, and Day 3 (Sunday morning).

 After taking photos all Sunday morning, it was time to head back to the East Ely Depot for lunch. NNRY Executive Director Mark Bassett asked if I would like to ride back with the crew. Wow, really?! I didn't have to think twice about that! I immediately said yes and climbed into the cab. The Fireman was at his post (above), and the Engineer was at his. He was all smiles all weekend, such a nice gentleman.

This is Gordon, the Brakeman, a volunteer from California who also has done a lot of photography and has a nice webpage. Behind him is the coal car. We had gone through a lot of coal by this point!

 

And here's the belly of the beast, the big steam boiler. This is what makes the train go.

We were headed back to the station in reverse, as there's no turn-around at the end of the line (at least where we were).

There are four different kinds of oil in these cans. I asked what they were, and they told me, but I'm afraid my memory doesn't recall.

This is a magic door. Press the pedal on the floor, and...

...it opens, revealing the fiery furnace inside.

The Fireman was in a good mood.

Actually, everyone was. It was a beautiful day and we were on a terrific engine.

This gauge shows the amount of pressure in the furnace. If the number gets a little too low, add some water. (I think--I'd need a little more training before they let me operate it!)

Here's the view behind us as we chugged along backwards.

And the view forwards (while I got to steal the Fireman's seat for a little while!).

The Fireman is checking gauges, and it looks like it's time to make an adjustment.

More coal into the boiler! Look at how the shovel glows. This thing is hot.

I leaned out the side to watch the wheels move around. They were mesmerizing. I couldn't take a photo without falling out, but I could get one of the Engineer on his perch.

Crossing Highway 93.

Now we're entering the main yard and it's time to make lots of adjustments.

And check out the shadow of the engine!

It was so very cool to have the opportunity to ride in the Engine. You can see firsthand how much these people running the engine know and how they love being on a working railroad.

There was still more to the weekend, but riding in the Engine was such a highlight!

A few more photos:

A lock on one of the freight cars

Colorful caboose awaiting another ride.

Wrecking crane

Diesel engines with water tower in background

Filling the coal car's water tank

 I highly recommend a visit to the  Nevada Northern Railway. There is so much to see and do, and the more time I spend there, the more I'm impressed.

Nevada Northern Railway Winter Steam Spectacular--Sunday Morning

This is part 4 in a 5 part series about the Nevada Northern Railway Winter Steam Spectacular Photo Shoot. Check out Day 1, Day 2, and Enginehouse posts.

 I got so enthralled with exploring the Enginehouse that when I heard the train whistle blew, I thought I had missed the train! I was trying to figure out how to catch up to it at the next stop when I saw little groups of photographers and sighed in relief. I still had time. In fact, they were positioning the freight train with the passenger car attached to the back. The conductor was keeping an eye out as the train backed up.

NNRY Executive Director Mark Bassett was on the caboose.

While the previous morning had been a shoot with the passenger cars, this morning was going to be with the freight cars.

 The Engineer was checking things out from his perch.

We ended up with a little time to take some closeups of the steamy engine in the yard.

Then we boarded. I chose to go in the caboose this time.

We headed northeast from the yard, on the line towards McGill. Then we stopped at Steptoe Creek for some photos.

The embankment was a little steep.

 The sun cooperated, and we had some great shots. The creek is dry right now, but there was a culvert so we could get photos from both sides.

Again, I love getting people in my photos!

 Where is the train going? Not to worry, it will back up and cruise along the rails again!

 I was ready to try the other side. The backlighting made for some interesting effects.

It was a lot of fun trying out different camera settings.

On this day I brought my older camera body with a wide angle lens so that I wouldn't have to change lenses so often. That was helpful.


Where's the passenger car? They had detached it to make our photos look more realistic!


I found some nice Basin Wildrye, a tall grass that can grow to six feet tall. I'm working on a project to restore this native grass, so I thought it would be fun to include it in one of my train photos!


Then we moved further down the line to a nice curve.

I didn't get any photos there I really loved. But then we moved on and the sun came out again.

I call this one "The Engine 40 Glamour Shot." It's like I'm looking up at the model with the wind blowing her hair.

I never knew what might catch my eye during the photoshoot! Here it was symmetry and colors.

Brakeman Gordon came off the engine to be at the switching station.

It was fun trying to get photos from every possible angle.

Then I had an opportunity that would be the highlight of the weekend...stay tuned to read and see all about it!