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Taken with the 14" Celestron in the observatory at Cerritos College with a ZWO ASI224MC camera. The three images show Mars emerging from the occultation at 2022-12-08 03:30:06 UT, 03:30:22 UT, and 03:30:40 UT. A small subset of frames were extracted from a longer SER file for each image, then those frames were stacked in AutoStakkert and sharpened in PixInsight. A light touch with Topaz Denoise and some final processing in Photoshop to assemble the three images aligned on the lunar surface features.
CM longitude on Mars at the time of egress was 203°. The large crater above (north of) where Mars reappears is Petavius.
Evening. Subset time
The Moscow International Business Center ( Moscow-City)
And Moon :)
Moscow Russia
Heliconia, derived from the Greek word helikonios, is a genus of about 100 to 200 species of flowering plants which are native to the tropical Americas and Pacific Ocean islands west to Indonesia. Many species of Heliconia are found in rainforests or tropical wet forests of these regions. Common names for the genus include lobster-claws, wild plantains or false bird-of-paradise because of their close similarity to the bird-of-paradise flowers (Strelitzia). Collectively, these plants are also simply called Heliconias. See www.pacificfarmers.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/An-Iden...
These plants range from 1 ½ to 15 feet tall depending on species. The simple leaves of these plants range from 6 inches to 10 feet. They are characteristically long, oblong, alternate, or growing opposite one another on non-woody petioles often longer than the leaf, often forming large clumps with age. Their flowers are produced on long, erect or drooping panicles, and consist of brightly colored waxy bracts with small true flowers peeping out. The growth habit of heliconias is similar to Canna, Strelitzia, and bananas, to which they are related. The flowers can be hues of reds, oranges, yellows, and greens. The plants typically flower during the wet season. The bracts protect the flowers; floral shape often limits pollination to a subset of hummingbirds.
Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Miami FL
Leuzismus (von altgr. λευκός leukós „weiß“) ist eine Defekt-Mutation bei Tieren, die dazu führt, dass das Fell weiß und die darunterliegende Haut rosa sind, da die Haut keine Melanozyten (farbstoffbildende Zellen) enthält. Im Gegensatz dazu sind beim Albinismus die Zellen zwar vorhanden, aber unfähig, den Farbstoff Melanin zu bilden. Die meisten Formen der Scheckung sind auf abgeschwächte Formen des Leuzismus zurückzuführen.
de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leuzismus
Leucism is a wide variety of conditions which result in the partial loss of pigmentation in an animal—which causes white, pale, or patchy coloration of the skin, hair, feathers, scales or cuticles, but not the eyes. It is occasionally spelled leukism.
'Leucism' is often used to describe the phenotype that results from defects in pigment cell differentiation and/or migration from the neural crest to skin, hair, or feathers during development. This results in either the entire surface (if all pigment cells fail to develop) or patches of body surface (if only a subset are defective) having a lack of cells that can make pigment.
Since all pigment cell-types differentiate from the same multipotent precursor cell-type, leucism can cause the reduction in all types of pigment. This is in contrast to albinism, for which leucism is often mistaken. Albinism results in the reduction of melanin production only, though the melanocyte (or melanophore) is still present. Thus in species that have other pigment cell-types, for example xanthophores, albinos are not entirely white, but instead display a pale yellow colour.
More common than a complete absence of pigment cells is localized or incomplete hypopigmentation, resulting in irregular patches of white on an animal that otherwise has normal colouring and patterning. This partial leucism is known as a "pied" or "piebald" effect; and the ratio of white to normal-coloured skin can vary considerably not only between generations, but between different offspring from the same parents, and even between members of the same litter.
Taken with the 14" Celestron in the observatory at Cerritos College with a ZWO ASI224MC camera. The three images show the progress of the occultation at 2022-12-08 02:29:20 UT, 02:30:00 UT, and 02:30:13 UT. A small subset of frames were extracted from a longer SER file for each image, then those frames were stacked in AutoStakkert and sharpened in PixInsight. A light touch with Topaz Denoise and some final processing in Photoshop to assemble the three images aligned on Mars.
CM longitude on Mars at the time of the transit was 203°. The dark crater slight below Mars is Riccioli, with the north portion of Grimalidi to the right.
"Petit espace vide entre les parties d'un tout"
les tissus urbains et ruraux se maillent, raccordent, rapiècent resserrent leur trames...
Ces espaces m'intéressent car ils sont synonyme de liberté, créent un flou paradoxalement engendré par une partie finie, un ensemble fermé.
"Small space between the parts of a whole"
urban and rural network over fabrics, connect, tightening their frames ...
These areas interest me because they are means freedom, paradoxically create a blur generated by a finite subset, a closed set.
flors al cim del taga, després d'una llarga nit sense poder fer les fotos que voliem per culpa de la boira, però en fi ja hi tornarem, jeje, agost 2010, en companyia d'en Juli
flores en la cima del Taga, tras una larga noche sin poder hacer las fotos que queríamos por culpa de la niebla, pero en fin ya volveremos, jeje, agosto 2010, en compañía de Juli
flowers on the top of Taga, after a long night without being able to make the pictures we wanted because of the fog, but in the end there again, hahaha, August 2010, accompanied by Juli
A subset from the current light art installation "Voyage" created for the Baltimore Light City celebration. Since my camera really didn't do it justice in regards to capturing the continuously changing colors of the boats I decided to process in monochrome.
from the lightcity.org website :
"Voyage"
Artist: Aether & Hemera
Newcastle upon Tyne, England
Voyage consists of 300 floating ‘paper boats’ encasing colored dynamic LED lights for a spectacular light show in the Inner Harbor water. The fleet of paper boats uses the water as a canvas to create an organic matrix of ever-changing colored lights.
Canna (or Canna lily, although not a true lily) is a genus of approximately twenty species of flowering plants.[1][2] The closest living relations to cannas are the other plant families of the order Zingiberales, that is the gingers, bananas, marantas, heliconias, strelitzias, etc
Canna is the only genus in the family Cannaceae. Such a family has almost universally been recognized by taxonomists. The APG II system of 2003 (unchanged from the APG system, 1998) also recognizes the family, and assigns it to the order Zingiberales in the clade commelinids, in the monocots.
The species have large, attractive foliage and horticulturists have turned it into a large-flowered, brash, bright and sometimes gaudy, garden plant. In addition, it is one of the world's richest starch sources, and is an agricultural plant
Although a plant of the tropics, most cultivars have been developed in temperate climates and are easy to grow in most countries of the world as long as they can enjoy about 6 hours average sunlight during the summer. See the Canna cultivar gallery for photographs of Canna cultivars.
The name Canna originates from the Celtic word for a cane or reed
he plants are large tropical and subtropical perennial herbs with a rhizomatous rootstock. The broad, flat, alternate leaves, that are such a feature of this plant, grow out of a stem in a long narrow roll and then unfurl. The leaves are typically solid green but some cultivars have glaucose, brownish, maroon, or even variegated leaves
The flowers are composed of three sepals and three petals that are seldom noticed by people, they are small and hidden under extravagant stamens. What appear to be petals are the highly modified stamens or staminodes. The staminodes number (1–) 3 (–4) (with at least one staminodal member called the labellum, always being present. A specialized staminode, the stamen, bears pollen from a half-anther. A somewhat narrower, 'petal' is the pistil which is connected down to a three-chambered ovary
The flowers are typically red, orange, or yellow or any combination of those colours, and are aggregated in inflorescences that are spikes or panicles (thyrses). Although gardeners enjoy these odd flowers, nature really intended them to attract pollinators collecting nectar and pollen, such as bees, hummingbirds and bats. The pollination mechanism is conspicuously specialized. Pollen is shed on the style while still in the bud, and in the species and early hybrids some is also found on the stigma because of the high position of the anther, which means that they are self-pollinating. Later cultivars have a lower anther, and rely on pollinators alighting on the labellum and touching first the terminal stigma, and then the pollen
The wild species often grow to 2-3+ meters but there is a wide variation in size among cultivated plants; numerous cultivars have been selected for smaller stature.
Canna grow from swollen underground stems, correctly known as rhizomes, which store starch, and this is the main attraction of the plant to agriculture, having the largest starch particles of all plant life.[3]
Canna is the only member of the Liliopsida Class (monocot family) in which hibernation of seed is known to occur, due to its hard, impenetrable seed covering.
The genus is native to tropical and subtropical regions of the New World, from the southern United States (southern South Carolina west to southern Texas) and south to northern Argentina
Although all cannas are native to the New World, they have followed mankind's journeys of discovery and some species are cultivated and naturalized in most tropical and sub-tropical regions.
Canna cultivars are grown in most countries, even those with territory above the Arctic Circle, which have short summers but long days, and the rapid growth rate of Cannas makes them a feasible gardening plant, as long as they get their 6 hours of sunlight each day during the growing season and are protected from the cold of winter.
The first Cannas introduced to Europe were C. indica L., which was imported from the East Indies, though the species originated from the Americas. Charles de l'Ecluse, who first described and sketched C. indica indicates this origin, and states that it was given the name of indica, not because the plant is from India, in Asia, but because this species was originally transported from America: "Quia ex America primum delata sit"; and at that time, one described the tropical areas of that part of the globe as the Western Indies;[8] English speakers still call them the West Indies.
Much later, in 1658, Pison made reference[9] to another species which he documented under the vulgar or common name of 'Albara' and 'Pacivira', which resided, he said, in the shaded and damp places, between the tropics; this species is Canna angustifolia L., (later reclassified as C. glauca L. by taxonomists).[1]
Without exception, all Canna species that have been introduced into Europe can be traced back to the Americas, and it can be asserted with confidence that Canna is solely an American genus. If Asia and Africa provided some of the early introductions, they were only varieties resulting from C. indica and C. glauca cultivars that have been grown for a long time in India and Africa, with both species imported from Central and South America. Canna is an American genus, as pointed out by Lamarck were he argues that "Cannas were unknown to the ancients, and that it is only after the discovery of the New World, that they made their appearance in Europe; Since Canna have very hard and durable seed coverings, it is likely that seed remains would have survived in the right conditions and found by archaeologists in the Old World. If the soils of India or Africa had produced some of them, they would have been imported before the 1860s into European gardens.
* Some species and many cultivars are widely grown in the garden in temperate and sub-tropical regions. Sometimes, they are also grown as potted plants. A large number of ornamental cultivars have been developed. They can be used in herbaceous borders, tropical plantings, and as a patio or decking plant.
* Internationally, cannas are one of the most popular garden plants and a large horticultural industry depends on the plant.
* The canna rhizome is rich in starch, and it has many uses in agriculture. All of the plant has commercial value, rhizomes for starch (consumption by humans and livestock), stems and foliage for animal fodder, young shoots as a vegetable and young seeds as an addition to tortillas.
* The seeds are used as beads in jewelry.
* The seeds are used as the mobile elements of the kayamb, a musical instrument from Réunion, as well as the hosho, a gourd rattle from Zimbabwe, where the seeds are known as "hota" seeds.
* In remoter regions of India, cannas are fermented to produce alcohol.
* The plant yields a fibre - from the stem - it is used as a jute substitute.
* A fibre obtained from the leaves is used for making paper. The leaves are harvested in late summer after the plant has flowered, they are scraped to remove the outer skin and are then soaked in water for 2 hours prior to cooking. The fibres are cooked for 24 hours with lye and then beaten in a blender. They make a light tan brown paper.
* A purple dye is obtained from the seed.
* Smoke from the burning leaves is said to be insecticidal.
* Cannas are used to extract many undesirable pollutants in a wetland environment as they have a high tolerance to contaminants.
Wild Canna species are the Cannas unaffected by mankind. There are approximately 20 known species, and in the last three decades of the 20th century, Canna species have been categorised by two different taxonomists, Paul Maas, from the Netherlands and Nobuyuki Tanaka from Japan. Both reduced the number of species from the 50-100 that had been accepted previously, and assigned most to being synonyms.
The reduction in numbers is also confirmed by work done by Kress and Prince at the Smithsonian Institution, however, this only covers a subset of the species range.
Cannas became very popular in Victorian times as a garden plant and were grown widely in France, Germany, Hungary, India, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the USA.
As tender perennials in northern climates, they suffered severe setbacks when two world wars sent the young gardening staff off to war. It took many years for the frugalities of war and its rationing subsequences to change to the more prosperous times of the late 20th century. We have recently experienced a renewed interest and revival in popularity of the Canna genus.
There were once many hundreds of cultivars but many of these are now extinct. In 1910, Árpäd Mühle, from Hungary, published his Canna book , written in higher German. It contained descriptions of over 500 cultivars.
In recent years many new cultivars have been created, but the genus suffers severely from having many synonyms for many popular ones. Most of the synonyms were created by old varieties re-surfacing without viable names, with the increase in popularity from the 1960s onwards. Research has accumulated over 2,800 Canna cultivar names, however, many of these are simply synonyms.
See List of Canna hybridists for details of the people and firms that created the current Canna legacy we all enjoy.
In the early 1900s, Professor Liberty Hyde Bailey defined, in detail, two garden species (C. x generalis and C. x orchiodes) to categorise the floriferous Cannas being grown at that time, namely the Crozy hybrids and the ‘orchid-like’ hybrids introduced by Carl Ludwig Sprenger in Italy and Luther Burbank in the USA, at about the same time (1894) The definition was based on the genotype, rather than the phenotype, of the two cultivar groups. Inevitably, over time those two floriferous groups were interbred, the distinctions became blurred and overlapped, and the Bailey species names became redundant Pseudo-species names are now deprecated by the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants which, instead, provides Cultivar Groups for categorising cultivars
The Canna Agriculture Group contains all of the varieties of Canna grown in agriculture. Canna achira is a generic term used in South America to describe the cannas that have been selectively bred for agricultural purposes, normally derived from C. discolor. It is grown especially for its edible rootstock from which starch is obtained, but the leaves and young seed are also edible, and achira was once a staple foodcrop in Peru and Ecuador
Many more traditional varieties exist world-wide, they have all involved human selection and so are classified as agricultural cultivars. Traditionally, Canna 'edulis' has been reputed to be the variety grown for food in South America, but there is no scientific evidence to substantiate the name. It is probable that edulis is simply a synonym of C. discolor, which is grown for agricultural purposes throughout Asia.
Cannas grow best in full sun with moderate water in well-drained rich or sandy soil. Cannas grow from perennial rhizomes but are frequently grown as annuals in temperate zones for an exotic or tropical look in the garden.[2]
The rhizomes are marginally cold hardy but may rot if left unprotected in freezing conditions. In areas which go below about −10 °C in the winter, the rhizomes can be dug up before freezing and stored in a protected area (above +7 °C) for replanting in the spring. Otherwise, it is recommended that Cannas are protected by a thick layer of mulch overwinter.
Cannas are largely free of pests but in the USA plants sometimes fall victim to the Canna Leaf Roller and the resultant leaf damage can be most distressing to a keen gardener.
Slugs and snails are fond of Cannas and can leave large holes in the leaves, preferring the tender young leaves that have not yet unfurled. Red Spider Mite can also be a problem for Cannas grown indoors or during a very hot, long summer outdoors. The Japanese Beetles will also ravage the leaves if left uncontrolled.
Canna are remarkably free of disease, compared to many genus. However, they may fall victim to canna rust, a fungus resulting in orange spots on the plant's leaves, caused by over moist soil. Cannas are also susceptible to certain plant viruses, some of which are Canna specific viruses, which may result in spotted or streaked leaves, in a mild form, but can finally result in stunted growth and twisted and distorted blooms and foliage.
The flowers are sometimes affected by a grey, fuzzy mold called Botrytis. Under humid conditions it is often found growing on the older flowers. Treatment is to simply remove the old flowers, so the mould does not spread to the new flowers.
Seeds are produced from sexual reproduction, involving the transfer of pollen from the stamen of the pollen parent onto the stigma of the seed parent. In the case of Canna, the same plant can usually play the roles of both pollen and seed parents, technically referred to as a hermaphrodite. However, the cultivars of the Italian Group and triploids are almost always seed sterile, and their pollen has a low fertility level. Mutations are almost always totally sterile.
The species are capable of self-pollination, but most cultivars require an outside pollinator. All cannas produce nectar and therefore attract nectar consuming insects, bats and hummingbirds that act as the transfer agent, spreading pollen between stamens and stigmas, on the same or different inflorescence.
Since genetic recombination has occurred a cultivar grown from seed will have different characteristics to its parent(s) and thus should never be given a parent’s name. The wild species have evolved in the absence of other Canna genes and are deemed to be ‘true to type’ when the parents are of the same species. In the latter case there is still a degree of variance, producing various varieties or minor forms (forma). In particular, the species C. indica is an aggregate species, having many different and extreme varieties and forma ranging from the giant to miniature, from large foliage to small foliage, both green and dark foliage and many different coloured blooms, red, orange, pink, and yellow and combinations of those colours.
Outside of a laboratory, the only asexual propagation method that is effective is rhizome division. This is done by using material from a single parent, and as there is no exchange of genetic material such vegetative propagation methods almost always produce plants that are identical to the parent. After a summer’s growth the horticultural Canna can be separated into typically four or five separate smaller rhizomes, each with a growing nodal point (‘growing eye’). Without the growing point, which is composed of meristem material, the rhizome will not grow.
Micropropagation, or tissue culture as it is also known, is the practice of rapidly multiplying stock plant material to produce a large number of progeny plants. Micropropagation using in vitro (in glass) methods that produce plants by taking small sections of plants and moving them into a sterile environment were they first produce proliferations that are then separated from each other and then rooted or allowed to grow new stem tissue. The process of plant growth is regulated by different ratios of plant growth regulators or PGRs, that promote cell growth. Many commercial organizations have attempted to produce Canna this way, and specifically the “Island Series” of Cannas was introduced by means of mass produced plants using this technique. However, Cannas have a reputation of being difficult micropropagation specimens.
Note Micropropagation techniques can be employed on specimens infected with Canna virus and used to dis-infest plants of the virus, it is possible to use a growing shoot tip as the explant, the growing tip is induced into rapid growth, which results in rapid cell division that has not had time to be infected with the virus. The rapidly growing region of meristem cells producing the shoot tip is cut off and placed in vitro, with a very high probability of being uncontaminated by virus, since it has not yet had contact with the sap of the plant which moves the virus within the plant. In this way, healthy stock can be reclaimed from virus contaminated plants.
Explore Accolades (Auszeichnungen) and FAQs (Fragen und Antworten)
NOVEMBER 11, 2020
ff
Earlier this year, Flickr rebuilt the infrastructure that powers our beloved Explore page. Explore features about 500 exemplary images from across Flickr every day, highlighting photos that have caught the attention of the Flickr community. In rebuilding the tooling that powers Explore, we wanted to make sure it features a wide array of Flickr members, and that the images being highlighted represent great quality and community engagement.
Today, we want to share some exciting data on Explore and celebrate some impressive accolades with our community.
NEW
Why do I see photos with fewer faves or comments or views than mine on Explore?
The images featured in Explore aren’t necessarily the ones that gathered the most views, faves, or comments. We try to weigh in the quality of those actions over quantity. The timing of when you posted also plays a role.
Does adding my photo to groups help my chances of getting into Explore?
NO, but
===================>>
Adding your photos to on-topic groups is a great way to connect with other Flickr members interested in the same kind of photography that you do. It is also a great way to build community and interaction around your work, thus improving your chances of getting featured!
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blog.flickr.net/en/2020/11/11/explore-accolades-and-faqs/
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sunset after glowing
via
SAMSUNG
S10
Nightmode
- 2 EV
52 mm camera
Highest position: 298 on Wednesday, January 13, 2021
See score:
Highest position: 299 on Wednesday, January 13, 2021
bighugelabs.com/scout.php?mode=history&id=50824004916
Explored#299 ranking of 500
Explore 500 listing, today
IS there a score?
i think not.
legends are:
Who picks the images for the Explore showcase?
Selections for Explore are made by a math equation. This math equation (called an algorithm) calculates a score based on how many views, faves and comments an images gets over a period of time.
The better the score the higher an image gets placed in the Explore list. Faves are heavily weighted in the equation and are far more important than comments. This score is often referred to as the "interestingness" factor of an image
-
Explore group
The algorithm flickr designed (and renewed recently) picks every single image for explore.
www.flickr.com/groups/inexplore/pool/map?mode=group
Admin
David Kracht (or anyone else here) has nothing to do with the choices for explore.
. Photos located in this group can be seen as a
refined subset of the interesting photos currently on Flickr.
Flotsam in the in explore group (327.784 items)
Tools
un dels matins dels dies que he passat a formentera, es la platja de "es pujols"
farm5.static.flickr.com/4055/4675981960_c141550148_b.jpg
1. surt el sol, 2. 5D_20100217_0002
HELIOS 81N 50mm f/2.0
This shot was taken with the magnificent HELIOS 81N 50mm f/2.0! An excellent, budget, soviet 50mm lens
Heliconia, derived from the Greek word helikonios, is a genus of about 100 to 200 species of flowering plants native to the tropical Americas and the Pacific Ocean islands west to Indonesia. Many species of Heliconia are found in rainforests or tropical wet forests of these regions. Common names for the genus include lobster-claws, wild plantains or false bird-of-paradise. The last term refers to their close similarity to the bird-of-paradise flowers (Strelitzia). Collectively, these plants are also simply referred to as heliconias.
The Heliconia are a monophyletic genus in the family Heliconiaceae, but was formerly included in the family Musaceae, which includes the bananas (e.g., Musa, Ensete; Judd et al., 2007). However, the APG system of 1998, and its successor, the APG II system of 2003, confirms the Heliconiaceae as distinct and places them in the order Zingiberales, in the commelinid clade of monocots.
These herbaceous plants range from 0.5 to nearly 4.5 meters (1.5–15 feet) tall depending on the species (Berry and Kress, 1991). The simple leaves of these plants are 15–300 cm (6 in-10 ft). They are characteristically long, oblong, alternate, or growing opposite one another on non-woody petioles often longer than the leaf, often forming large clumps with age. Their flowers are produced on long, erect or drooping panicles, and consist of brightly colored waxy bracts, with small true flowers peeping out from the bracts. The growth habit of heliconias is similar to Canna, Strelitzia, and bananas, to which they are related.The flowers can be hues of reds, oranges, yellows, and greens, and are subtended by brightly colored bracts. The plants typically flower during the wet season. These bracts protect the flowers; floral shape often limits pollination to a subset of the hummingbirds in the region (Gilman and Meerow, 2007).
Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Miami FL
Explore Aug 1, 2020 #361
Heliconias are grown for florists and as landscape plants in tropical regions all over the world. Heliconias need an abundance of water, sunlight, and soils rich in humus. The flower of H. psittacorum (Parrot Heliconia) is especially distinctive, its greenish-yellow flowers with black spots and red bracts are reminiscent of bright parrot plumage. Most commonly grown landscape Heliconia species include Heliconia augusta, H. bihai, H. brasiliensis, H. caribaea, H. latispatha, H. pendula, H. psittacorum, H. rostrata, H. schiediana, and H. wagneriana.
Heliconia, derived from the Greek word helikonios, is a genus of about 100 to 200 species of flowering plants which are native to the tropical Americas and Pacific Ocean islands west to Indonesia. Many species of Heliconia are found in rainforests or tropical wet forests of these regions. Common names for the genus include lobster-claws, wild plantains or false bird-of-paradise because of their close similarity to the bird-of-paradise flowers (Strelitzia). Collectively, these plants are also simply called Heliconias.
These plants range from 1 ½ to 15 feet tall depending on species. The simple leaves of these plants range from 6 inches to 10 feet. They are characteristically long, oblong, alternate, or growing opposite one another on non-woody petioles often longer than the leaf, often forming large clumps with age. Their flowers are produced on long, erect or drooping panicles, and consist of brightly colored waxy bracts with small true flowers peeping out. The growth habit of heliconias is similar to Canna, Strelitzia, and bananas, to which they are related. The flowers can be hues of reds, oranges, yellows, and greens. The plants typically flower during the wet season. The bracts protect the flowers; floral shape often limits pollination to a subset of hummingbirds.
Heliconias are an important food source for forest hummingbirds, some of which (for example Rufous-breasted Hermit, Glaucis hirsuta) also use the plant for nesting. The Honduran White Bat, Ectophylla alba also lives in tents it makes from Heliconia leaves.
Heliconia psittacorum, Parrot Heliconia
Biscayne Park FL
The Great Orion Nebula (Messier 42). We all know it. It’s one of the first targets we point our telescope or camera at before stumbling down the ridiculous rabbit hole that is astrophotography.
One of my main goals in astsophtoogrpahy has been to meticulously create the most detailed and deep image of the Orion Nebula I could manage. A perfect challenging in astrophotography, in my opinion, as Orion is both a delightful and easy target for beginners, and as advanced a target as we might like for revisiting in years to come. Over the past three years or so I’ve accumulated some 150 hours of data on Orion, scattered amidst assorted experiments and attempts in editing (which, up until now, I’ve never finished). Over the past four months I’ve collected the images for this rendition, and spent an embarrassing amount of time learning and experimenting with new (to me) post-processing approaches to arrive at this result. I’m sincerely delighted to share this labor of love with everyone.
Constrictive feedback and discussion are absolutely welcome.
Acquisition Details
Takahashi FSQ-106EDX4, ZWO ASI2600MM Pro, iOptron CEM-40EC
- Jan 22 2022, Jan 26 2022, Feb 4 2022
- Astronomik RGB: 75x30" (37' 30") f/5 -20°C bin 1x1
- Astronomik RGB: 480x10" (1h 20') f/5 -20°C bin 2x2
- Astronomik UV+IR L2: 136x120" (4h 32’) f/5 -20°C bin 1x1
- Astronomik UV+IR L2: 160x30" (1h 20') f/5 -20°C bin 1x1
Celestron RASA-8, ZWO ASI2600MC Pro, iOptron CEM-40EC
- Jan 23 2022, Jan 24 2022, Jan 28 2022
- Color Imaging: 60x5" (5') f/2 -20°C bin 1x1
- Color Imaging: 129x120" (4h 18') f/2 -20°C bin 1x1
Additional Details at AstroBin
Post-Processing
Source data includes two nights of long and short exposures captured with my Celestron RASA-8 and ZWO ASI2600MC Pro, and numerous nights captured with my Takahashi FSQ-106EDX4 and ZWO ASI2600MM Pro with Astronomik UV/IR L2 and Deep Sky RGB filters. With the Takahashi I captured short and long exposures in luminance and color, along with a separate 4-panel mosaic in LRGB (binned color) which I used for stars and fine detail in highlights. I discarded sub-par data from sessions liberally. A master luminance image was created with data combined from both telescopes (blended into RASA data for the larger field of view, which was a point of challenge). A master color image was created with the RASA data, which contributed color for nebulae and background. And the four-panel mosaic was prepared and processed separately, ultimately contributing detail in highlights and the stars in the final rendition. And just because, why not—I’ve gone this far—I used my best subset of 5s exposures captured in Hα, last year, for luminance on the Trapezium. (The original is more than 16000 pixels across, and I went out of my way to present fine detail so a large print could end up on my wall, allowing me to appreciate details up close, returning me to these fun and stupidly cold nights whenever I like.) Starless versions were sent out to Adobe Photoshop for final combination and blending. Some normal PixInsight steps, like HDR combination, also ended up being handled, in part, in Adobe Photoshop. PixInsight was used during this process for features such as Local Histogram Equalization.
It’s challenging to outline post-processing details on this one because the workflow ended up looking like the stereotypical insane person’s wall cataloging a crime scene investigation, but I’m delighted to answer any questions someone may have.
The California Gull can be found plentifully up and down the West Coast, but it is also common as far inland as eastern Wyoming and north into the Canadian Prairie provinces. It displays in typical gull fashion, appearing in parking lots, trash dumps and on beaches.
Many gull species have a red dot on the lower mandible, but as far as I have found in my bird photography and discovery, this is the only gull that also has a bit of black on the tip of the bill.
Gull identification is a subset of birding all its own. I always start with location: what gulls am I likely to find in a particular place then study their characteristics. Take lots of phots and peruse those photos carefully for species.
This bird was fairly easy. It was one of only a few mature birds in a flock of juvenile Californias. A few Western Gulls were nearby (larger; pink legs, not yellow) and a couple juvenile Heermann's Gulls. The California also has a dark eye with a very slight red ring.
I found this bird on the Pacific side of the Baja Peninsula outside Todos Santos, Mexico.
took this picture on a quiet Sunday afternoon
On Explore 2-26-09 #192 On again on 3-11-09 Don't know the position. On again, 3-13-09 #201 (calendar 2-21-09) Don't know how this works! But says it is on Explores current, not dropped!
Heliconia, derived from the Greek word helikonios, is a genus of about 100 to 200 species of flowering plants native to the tropical Americas and the Pacific Ocean islands west to Indonesia. Many species of Heliconia are found in rainforests or tropical wet forests of these regions. Common names for the genus include lobster-claws, wild plantains or false bird-of-paradise. The last term refers to their close similarity to the bird-of-paradise flowers (Strelitzia). Collectively, these plants are also simply referred to as heliconias.
The Heliconia are a monophyletic genus in the family Heliconiaceae, but was formerly included in the family Musaceae, which includes the bananas (e.g., Musa, Ensete; Judd et al., 2007). However, the APG system of 1998, and its successor, the APG II system of 2003, confirms the Heliconiaceae as distinct and places them in the order Zingiberales, in the commelinid clade of monocots.
These herbaceous plants range from 0.5 to nearly 4.5 meters (1.5–15 feet) tall depending on the species (Berry and Kress, 1991). The simple leaves of these plants are 15–300 cm (6 in-10 ft). They are characteristically long, oblong, alternate, or growing opposite one another on non-woody petioles often longer than the leaf, often forming large clumps with age. Their flowers are produced on long, erect or drooping panicles, and consist of brightly colored waxy bracts, with small true flowers peeping out from the bracts. The growth habit of heliconias is similar to Canna, Strelitzia, and bananas, to which they are related.The flowers can be hues of reds, oranges, yellows, and greens, and are subtended by brightly colored bracts. The plants typically flower during the wet season. These bracts protect the flowers; floral shape often limits pollination to a subset of the hummingbirds in the region (Gilman and Meerow, 2007).
Heliconia Mildred, Heliconia mathiasiae 'Mildred'
Windows to the Tropics, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Miami FL
A subset of the Seen Series devoted to George Floyd. All scenes are from Portland's Peninsula Park, the site of the city's first organized vigil gathering for George Floyd on Friday May 29, 2020.
These iPhone photos were made the next day as people continued to show their respect and express their anger and grief.
Seen. A series of iPhone scenes from daily walks around Portland neighborhoods with the dogs.
Taking from a balcony of a restaurant while waiting to be served 2 Years ago,
I can't tell you how I miss warmer days for some outdoor activities like planting in the garden:-)
Have a lovely Sunday!
There are a lot of quite varied woodland trails in and around Ottawa. Each attracts a range of species, but some are known to be reliable locations for a subset of species. Looking for Woodpeckers, I knew where I wanted to go.
Like many other species, Hairy Woodpeckers are opportunistic feeders. They will hear another species feeding, and assume there is something there for them too. This bird had watched a Pileated Woodpecker open up the hole in the bark. I heard the Pileated as well, and was trying to position myself to take advantage of fading light and uneven ground when it flew to a nearby tree. While I was picking a route to meet it at the second tree, this bird jumped into the spot formerly occupied by the Pileated. There was less drilling to do, and apparently some food left behind.
I did eventually catch up to the Pileated, but I like this image more.
Organ Peaks/Desert Mountains National Monument, New Mexico--from my winter trip to the Southwest in 2020.
I was waiting, in vain, for the sun to illuminate this entire subset of mountains and took this photo (actually, photos as this is a pano combining three) in the meantime. a few minutes before, the entire foreground was brilliantly lit while the mountains were in shadow. Perhaps I'll upload that pano another time.
This is just east of Las Cruces--a location that would be high on my list of places to move to if I was ever so inclined to pull up stakes. The climate is relatively nice--i.e., it doesn't get crazy hot like in Phoenix in the summer (it sits at almost 4,000 feet above sea level), and doesn't often drop below freezing in winter. But it does snow occasionally, which is nice (more so in the mountains, of course), and in fact there was snow in patches on the ground in the city at this time. There is a large university there which ensures a more cosmopolitan atmosphere even though it's fairly small (a bit over 100,000). And if you get the urge to be in a larger city, El Paso is a 50 minute drive away.
Explore Apr 28, 2017 #56
Heliconia, derived from the Greek word helikonios, is a genus of about 100 to 200 species of flowering plants native to the tropical Americas and the Pacific Ocean islands west to Indonesia. Many species of Heliconia are found in rainforests or tropical wet forests of these regions. Common names for the genus include lobster-claws, wild plantains or false bird-of-paradise. The last term refers to their close similarity to the bird-of-paradise flowers (Strelitzia). Collectively, these plants are also simply referred to as heliconias.
The Heliconia are a monophyletic genus in the family Heliconiaceae, but was formerly included in the family Musaceae, which includes the bananas (e.g., Musa, Ensete; Judd et al., 2007). However, the APG system of 1998, and its successor, the APG II system of 2003, confirms the Heliconiaceae as distinct and places them in the order Zingiberales, in the commelinid clade of monocots.
These herbaceous plants range from 0.5 to nearly 4.5 meters (1.5–15 feet) tall depending on the species (Berry and Kress, 1991). The simple leaves of these plants are 15–300 cm (6 in-10 ft). They are characteristically long, oblong, alternate, or growing opposite one another on non-woody petioles often longer than the leaf, often forming large clumps with age. Their flowers are produced on long, erect or drooping panicles, and consist of brightly colored waxy bracts, with small true flowers peeping out from the bracts. The growth habit of heliconias is similar to Canna, Strelitzia, and bananas, to which they are related.The flowers can be hues of reds, oranges, yellows, and greens, and are subtended by brightly colored bracts. The plants typically flower during the wet season. These bracts protect the flowers; floral shape often limits pollination to a subset of the hummingbirds in the region (Gilman and Meerow, 2007).
Heliconia wagneriana, Heliconia elongata
Windows to the Tropics, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Miami FL
Heliconia, derived from the Greek word helikonios, is a genus of about 100 to 200 species of flowering plants native to the tropical Americas and the Pacific Ocean islands west to Indonesia. Many species of Heliconia are found in rainforests or tropical wet forests of these regions. Common names for the genus include lobster-claws, wild plantains or false bird-of-paradise. The last term refers to their close similarity to the bird-of-paradise flowers (Strelitzia). Collectively, these plants are also simply referred to as heliconias.
The Heliconia are a monophyletic genus in the family Heliconiaceae, but was formerly included in the family Musaceae, which includes the bananas (e.g., Musa, Ensete; Judd et al., 2007). However, the APG system of 1998, and its successor, the APG II system of 2003, confirms the Heliconiaceae as distinct and places them in the order Zingiberales, in the commelinid clade of monocots.
These herbaceous plants range from 0.5 to nearly 4.5 meters (1.5–15 feet) tall depending on the species (Berry and Kress, 1991). The simple leaves of these plants are 15–300 cm (6 in-10 ft). They are characteristically long, oblong, alternate, or growing opposite one another on non-woody petioles often longer than the leaf, often forming large clumps with age. Their flowers are produced on long, erect or drooping panicles, and consist of brightly colored waxy bracts, with small true flowers peeping out from the bracts. The growth habit of heliconias is similar to Canna, Strelitzia, and bananas, to which they are related. The flowers can be hues of reds, oranges, yellows and greens, and are subtended by brightly colored bracts. The plants typically flower during the wet season. These bracts protect the flowers; floral shape often limits pollination to a subset of the hummingbirds in the region (Gilman and Meerow, 2007).
Windows to the Tropics, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Miami FL