STAR and SUN
View allAll Photos Tagged equator
Redstart (M) - Phoenicuros Phoenicuros
The common redstart (Phoenicurus phoenicurus), or often simply redstart, is a small passerine bird in the redstart genus Phoenicurus. Like its relatives, it was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family, (Turdidae), but is now known to be an Old World flycatcher (family Muscicapidae).
Common redstarts prefer open mature birch and oak woodland with a high horizontal visibility and low amounts of shrub and understorey especially where the trees are old enough to have holes suitable for its nest. They prefer to nest on the edge of woodland clearings. In Britain it occurs primarily in upland areas less affected by agricultural intensification, but further east in Europe also commonly in lowland areas, including parks and old gardens in urban areas. They nest in natural tree holes, so dead trees or those with dead limbs are beneficial to the species; nestboxes are sometimes used. A high cover of moss and lichen is also preferred. They also use mature open conifer woodland, particularly in the north of the breeding range. Management to thin out the trees is thus favoured.
In England, where it has declined by 55% in the past 25 years, the Forestry Commission offers grants under a scheme called England's Woodland Improvement Grant (EWIG); as does Natural Englands Environmental Stewardship Scheme. It is a very rare and irregular breeding bird in Ireland, with between one and five pairs breeding in most years, mainly in County Wicklow.
It is a summer visitor throughout most of Europe and western Asia (east to Lake Baikal), and also in northwest Africa in Morocco. It winters in central Africa and Arabia, south of the Sahara Desert but north of the Equator, from Senegal east to Yemen. It is widespread as a breeding bird in Great Britain, particularly in upland broadleaf woodlands and hedgerow trees, but in Ireland it is very local, and may not breed every year.
The males first arrive in early to mid April, often a few days in advance of the females. Five or six light blue eggs are laid during May, with a second brood in mid summer in the south of the breeding range. It departs for Africa between mid-August and early October. It often feeds like a flycatcher, making aerial sallies after passing insects, and most of its food consists of winged insects. The call is chat-like and the alarm a plaintive single note, wheet, like that of many other chats.
The male’s song is similar to that of the Robin, but never more than a prelude, since it has an unfinished, feeble ending.
Thanks to all who take the time to Comment/fav etc, It is always appreciated.
Quito is the capital of Ecuador, the country's most populous city, and at an elevation of 2,850 metres (9,350 ft) above sea level, it is the second-highest official capital city in the world, after La Paz, and the closest to the equator. It is located in the Guayllabamba river basin, on the eastern slopes of Pichincha, an active stratovolcano in the Andes Mountains.
The historic centre of Quito is one of the largest, least-altered and best-preserved in the Americas. Quito and Kraków, Poland, were the first World Cultural Heritage Sites declared by UNESCO, in 1978.
"Ginkgo biloba (L., 1771) è una pianta, unica specie ancora sopravvissuta della famiglia Ginkgoaceae, dell'intero ordine Ginkgoales (Engler 1898) e della divisione delle Ginkgophyta. È un albero antichissimo le cui origini risalgono a 250 milioni di anni fa nel Permiano e per questo è considerato un fossile vivente. È una specie relitta." da Wikipedia
"Che cosa è una specie relitta? Per "relitto geografico" si intende generalmente un determinato organismo che, nell'area dove vive attualmente, è rimasto come testimonianza di una situazione passata durante la quale era maggiormente diffuso. Esistono anche "relitti tassonomici", ossia organismi che hanno mantenuto attraverso il tempo caratteristiche morfologiche e biologiche di antica origine. Ad esempio l'albero di ginkgo (Ginkgo biloba) era ampiamente diffuso in Europa durante il mesozoico (oltre 65 milioni di anni fa) ed è rimasto praticamente immutato da allora conservando i caratteri arcaici dell’intero gruppo di piante estinte cui appartiene. Come unico rappresentante vivente di questo, esso può considersi un “fossile vivente” ad elevato isolamento tassonomico e filogenetico. Per capire come sia possibile trovare piante relitte in Italia occorre ripercorrere la storia della terra da 50 milioni di anni fa fino ad oggi. Durante il periodo terziario la deriva dei continenti aveva disposto le terre emerse in una posizione abbastanza simile all'attuale. Il Polo Sud però si trovava poco distante dal Sudafrica e l'Equatore decorreva lungo l'Europa meridionale. Il clima della regione corrispondente all'Italia era quindi tipicamente tropicale e la flora era caratterizzata da specie di clima caldo umido tra cui numerose Sequoie, Ficus, Magnolie, Eucalyptus, Bignonie, Gardenie ecc., giunte fino ai nostri giorni imprigionate nella roccia sotto forma di fossili. Durante tutto il terziario il Polo Nord continuò ad avvicinarsi all'Europa a causa di oscillazioni dell'asse terrestre e corrispondentemente il clima divenne via via più freddo. Fino alla fine del periodo terziario il clima della nostra zona rimase caldo, variando dal clima tropicale dell'eocene (50 milioni di anni fa) al clima temperato-caldo del pliocene (2 milioni di anni fa)."
dal sito:
noixlucoli.blogspot.com/2012/06/le-specie-vegetali-relitt...
The nearer to the equator the more sensational sunsets seem to become. Being just six degrees south of the equator the chances were good and so it proved. Alas this was the only location on this trip where I was able to get out and watch the sun go down.
071/365,
Azamara Onward,
Java Sea,
4764 NM, from start in Sydney,
Cruising at 14.4 knots,
close to the equator,
Cempah, Riau Islands, Indonesia
Moonrise over Mount Kenya, with the suns rays still casting pink beams into the sky. Taken about 8 minutes after sunset - which falls fast on the equator.
Il "Marco do Equador" è un punto turistico che segna la linea dell'Equatore, una divisione immaginaria che separa l'emisfero nord boreale dall'emisfero sud australe.
The "Equator Monument" is a tourist spot that marks the Equator line, an imaginary division that separates the northern hemisphere from the southern hemisphere.
0°00'00"S 6°31'20"E
Gong Xi Fatt Choy !... Well my friends, my first sunset shot of 2011...Wishing my Chinese friends all over, Happy Chinese new year...May the year of the rabbit brings good fortune and health. As usual, it's a 2-day holidays in Malaysia. People of various races and religion are going around visiting their chinese friends and neighbors in the malaysian unique culture of an "Open House" concept.
Nikon D700 + Nikon 80-200mm f/2.8 AF-D + Handheld
Today,on the drive from Kenora,Ontario to Winnipeg Airport, Manitoba, I stumbled upon this sign !!!....so I stood there and felt good about it..like I did in Ecuador at the line called the Equator..which was later proved to be about 30 feet out !!
At the Celestial equator the stars are almost at the same distance from both celestial poles so they seem to travel in a straight line. The South Celestial pole is towards the top left of the photo. The North Celestial pole is below the horizon towards the bottom-right.
Startrails on a 3 hours exposure. The region at the left(straight trails) belongs to the celestial equator. Celestial equator is a projection of the Earth's equator on the celestial sphere.
Mangled marbles.
Next time you’re flying across the equator make sure you are standing by a draining sink. You should see the direction of rotation of the swirling water plummeting down the plughole reverse as you go over the equator… in theory :)
Depending on which hemisphere you are in the water swirls clockwise (Northern) or anticlockwise (Southern). This is due to the Coriolis effect which arises from an interaction between gravity and the spinning spheroid on which we sit… or fly. The same effect also causes weather effects like anticyclones being high pressure areas in one hemisphere and low pressure in the other, and vice versa for cyclones.
This image is the result of merry mangling for Sliders Sunday. It reminded me a bit of water going down a plughole in two directions at once, hence the title.
The basic approach was to start with a brightly coloured image (I’ll link it as I normally do in the first comment), radially blur it and then copy the resulting layer. Use the same twirl distortion in different directions on the two copies and then blend them using blend ranges. You can find instructions for this sort of effect using Google, but this is the first time I have tried it. I can’t help but think the next attempt will be better! Fun was had which is the main thing...
Thank you for taking time to look. I hope you enjoy the image! Happy Sliders Sunday :)
[1. Chose bright starting image (would have been better with more variation).
2. Radial Blurred
3. Copied layer.
4. Twirled layers in different directions.
5. Copied top layer and moved it down to layer 3.
6. For each layer added HSL adjustment and played with them.
7. For top two layers blended them with Blend Ranges, lowered opacity and Blend types to taste (!)
8. Moved the layers about with Move tool.
9. Cropped; added dark vignette and depth of field blur to blur outer edges.
10. Added frame.
I started out in Photoshop, but moved it to Affinity Photo which allowed much more subtle adjustments to blend ranges and previewed blend types.]
PUBLISHED:
journeys.maps.com/geo-joint-pretty-lakes-in-pink/
-------------------------------------
The lesser flamingo (Phoenicoparrus minor) is a species of flamingo occurring in sub-Saharan Africa, with another population in India. Birds are occasionally reported from further north, but these are generally considered vagrants. It was moved from the genus Phoeniconaias to Phoenicoparrus in 2014.
The lesser flamingo is the smallest species of flamingo, though it is a tall and large bird by most standards. The species can weigh from 1.2 to 2.7 kg (2.6 to 6.0 lb). The standing height is around 80 to 90 cm (31 to 35 in). The total length (from beak to tail) and wingspan are in the same range of measurements, from 90 to 105 cm (35 to 41 in). Most of the plumage is pinkish white. The clearest difference between this species and the greater flamingo, the only other Old World species of flamingo, is the much more extensive black on the bill. Size is less helpful unless the species are together, since the sexes of each species also differ in height.
The lesser flamingo may be the most numerous species of flamingo, with a population that (at its peak) probably numbered up to two million individual birds. This species feeds primarily on Spirulina, algae which grow only in very alkaline lakes. Presence of flamingo groups near water bodies is indication of sodic alkaline water which is not suitable for irrigation use. Although blue-green in colour, the algae contain the photosynthetic pigments that give the birds their pink colour. Their deep bill is specialised for filtering tiny food items.
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lesser_flamingo
Lake Amboseli is located in the Nyiri Desert (also called Taru or Nyika Desert ) that stretches along southern border of Kenya and Tanzania. The name ‘lake’ is a bit of a misnomer as for most of the year all it is is a massive flat desert pan with no water in it, except after extended rains, when it becomes an alkaline lake.
“THE WET” AND “THE DRY” IN THE NORTHERN AUSTRALIAN TROPICS
The Northern Tropics of Australia in the Darwin region are described as having only 2 seasons – the “wet season” (or simply “The Wet”) (broadly November to April) and the “dry season” (or simply “The Dry”) (May to October). There is no local designation of Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter, although it should be noted that some ancient local indigenous calendars describe up to 8 seasons, categorised by not only weather but also flowering and fruiting of edible plants, appearance of migratory animals as food sources, river heights, etc.
While Europeans settled Darwin in the 1860s, indigenous Australians have occupied the area for at between 40,000 and 60,000 years.
In broad terms, the main differences between the Wet and the Dry relate to humidity levels, prevailing wind direction, and (as the names imply) rain, or the absence of rain.
Darwin has no frost, no snow and no hail.
Darwin is also largely flat and unelevated, with few locations exceeding 30 metres above sea level.
Darwin is located 12 degrees south of the equator, in the middle of the cyclone belt.
THE WET – NOVEMBER TO APRIL
During the Wet, temperatures range from a minimum of 27 – 28C overnight (sometimes not dropping below 30C) and 34 – 36C during the day. Humidity levels are in the range of 75 – 95%.
The prevailing monsoon wind direction is from the North West (i.e. from the Timor Sea), except during the frequent storms, which normally come from the South East.
Cyclones (the local name for a typhoon or hurricane) also form during the Wet as part of monsoon trough activity. The wind from a cyclone can come from any direction, depending on the relationship between the cyclone’s eye and the observer’s position.
Rainfall during the Wet approaches 2,000 mm; with the record for a 6 month Wet season period being 3,000 mm.
Sea temperature during the Wet is around 32C.
Towards the end of the wet season there are almost daily storms with strong winds from the south-east, generally late in the late afternoon. These storms are called “knock-em-downs” as they flatten the 2 metre tall native spear grass which covers all uncleared areas. The spear grass will eventually die off and a large proportion of it will burn in dry season grass fires. The spear grass seeds are a staple diet of many finches and parrots. The spear grass re-germinates when the first storms arrive in October or November.
THE DRY – MAY TO OCTOBER
During the Dry, temperatures range from a typical minimum of 20 - 21C overnight (on rare occasions dropping to 16C) and 30 -31C during the day. Humidity levels are in the range of 10 - 30%.
The prevailing wind direction is from the South East (i.e. from the direction of the Great Australian Desert); with an occasional light North West sea breeze rising in the late afternoon.
There is virtually no rain between April and October.
Because of the absence of rain, a high bushfire danger exists throughout the area during the Dry, with the highest risk occurring in August and September, before the next Wet season storms occur. During these months, the humidity is very low and the South East winds are at their strongest – up to 30 knots (around 55 km/hr).
Bushfire smoke blows out to sea and causes spectacular sunset effects.