BajaNomad

Share your memorable Baja celestial viewing experiences

Whale-ista - 5-24-2014 at 11:22 AM

So, last night's mythical meteor shower got me thinking: what have people seen in skies over Baja or elsewhere that was memorable, planned or otherwise? Did you ever schedule travels specifically to see the Perseids or other events? Eclipses (solar/lunar)?
(In July 1991, I think the total solar eclipse was briefly visible from southern Baja...)

Comets? Meteors? Other notable sights?

I love Baja skies on moonless nights when the Milky Way is a cloud overhead, but I've never been there for "special events" like last night.

My first (unplanned) experience of a "meteor shower" was in August, nearly 30 yrs ago, on the north shore of Kauai, after backpacking 12 miles along the Na Pali coast.

No lights for miles, perfectly clear skies (unusual that time of year), and I did not know the Perseid shower would be making its annual appearance. We marveled at all the "shooting stars," appearing almost constantly overhead, several every minute.

It was magical and completely unplanned. I remember thinking that was the norm for Kauai.

Anyone ever have a similar experience in Baja?

Gulliver - 5-24-2014 at 12:09 PM

In the early nineties on my sailboat in the Puerto Escondido area I could regularly see both zodiacal lights, extending from the East and West towards the zenith and following the zodiac, and at the same time see the Gegenschein, a diffuse area of light that is always exactly opposite the sun. It is sunlight reflected off of the solar wind tail steaming away from earth into space.

With the milky way and the two columns of light extending towards the diffuse spot slightly to the South of the zenith, I felt like I was a Bedouin in the desert thinking up some new crazy religion.

astrobaja - 5-24-2014 at 12:25 PM

Well given how cloudless a lot of Baja California is (and mostly devoid of light pollution) there are a LOT of opportunities for special celestial observing experiences. That is a big part of the reason why we moved here to the Sierra de San Pedro Martir!!

One of the more special ones was seeing comet Panstarrs emerging out the west with a sliver cresent moon, it was right by our house with a view to Punta Colonet some 45km to the west. Quite breath-taking!!

https://imageshack.com/i/5xcometpanstarrsj


Another time was observing and imaging the moon at km 72 of the camino observatorio with almost no atmospheric turbulence last june (the type of turbulence which causes the stars to twinkle and smears any fine details the the eyepiece of a telescope)

Here is the crater Plato (be sure to expand the view to full screen)

https://imageshack.com/i/nm7ya0j

The summer milky way is always mind-boggling just to view with the naked eye!

[Edited on 5-24-2014 by astrobaja]

sancho - 5-24-2014 at 12:51 PM

In San Felipe some 10 yrs. + ago, walking back from the
bano 2 am to the tent, when I remembered that Comet Hale Bop,
I believe it was called, looked up to see a streak across
the sky that looked like it took up 25% of sky

Paula - 5-24-2014 at 01:41 PM

Friends came down for a mule trip in the Sierra de San Francisco in February, 2008, when there was a full lunar eclipse. We hadn't planned the trip with the eclipse in mind, it was a bonus on our ride. On the first two nights, I was sorry that due to the bright moon we didn't see the stars to their best effect. Of course when the moon was in full shadow the stars shown in full brilliance for a short time in Santa Teresa campground. It was magical, and unforgettable!

David K - 5-24-2014 at 03:00 PM

About 1980, camping on Shell Island (20 miles south of San Felipe) with friends, one of the girls in our group looked up from the campfire and saw the sky was 'on fire'!

We all walked away from the light of the campfire to see the reddish glow in the sky... it was to the northeast as if above Puerto Peņasco, across the gulf.

We had never seen the sky glowing in the night like this. One of us wondered if it had anything to do with the Space Shuttle, which happened to be in orbit that weekend... maybe an experiment?

Upon our return to Escondido and seeing the news, we learned there was an unusual far south appearance of the Northern Lights or Aurora Borealis. Perhaps because I didn't have on my glasses, but I did not see the motion or same thing we had seen in movies to recognize the glowing as the Aurora. None of us had lived north of San Diego to have ever seen it either.

From Wiki... looked close to this image:



[Edited on 5-24-2014 by David K]

Aurora_Borealis_and_Australis_Poster.jpg - 14kB

windgrrl - 5-24-2014 at 03:45 PM

1. A UFO that turned out to be one of those plastic bag and candles rigs.
2. Lots of meteors this winter, with a big twin-tailed green fireball that streaked south over La Ribera.
3. Lots of iridium flares and ISS sightings.
4. Mercury

[Edited on 5-24-2014 by windgrrl]

mikeymarlin - 5-25-2014 at 01:40 PM

about 1996???? was living in Buena Vista---- stayed into July something to see the SOLAR ECLIPSE----anyone else this OLD ?????- it was very weird--as it darkened
the birds quit flying and singing , and it got very still and quiet --for maybe 20 minutes--then it started to get lite--the sun started to reappear--(in the middle of the sky ) well, it seemed like 8 sunrises that week !!

Gulliver - 5-25-2014 at 04:47 PM

It was 1991. Saw it while floating on my back on an air mattress in LaPaz harbor.

David K - 5-25-2014 at 05:14 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by mikeymarlin
about 1996???? was living in Buena Vista---- stayed into July something to see the SOLAR ECLIPSE----anyone else this OLD ?????- it was very weird--as it darkened
the birds quit flying and singing , and it got very still and quiet --for maybe 20 minutes--then it started to get lite--the sun started to reappear--(in the middle of the sky ) well, it seemed like 8 sunrises that week !!


Here is the eclipse web page I made from photos provided by 'M'... You will see Nomad Graham in one: http://www.vivabaja.com/eclipse/index.html

El Jefe - 5-25-2014 at 06:33 PM

In 1986 my boys and a friend of mine pulled out at a wide spot in the road to spend the night on the way south right where hwy 1 turns inland towards El Rosario, south of San Quintin. It was about an hour after dark and I was too tired to go on.

As we got out of the van, there in the sky brighter than we could believe was Halley's comet. What a great thing to share with my little nine and ten year old boys. We still talk about that night now and then. I don't expect to be around to see it again in 2061 but i hope they will see it and think of that magical night long ago.

elgatoloco - 5-25-2014 at 08:14 PM

May 2002 we were camped at Requeson and we saw Jupiter, Saturn, Mars, Venus & Mercury all at the same time. So did everyone else who was camped there at that time, I made sure of it. :biggrin:

We are planning a return trip to see it when it happens again in 2040. :saint:

mikeymarlin - 5-25-2014 at 09:14 PM

thanks for the correction GULLIVER---- this is what happens when you get OLD !!! I just couldn't recall ---wow --that was a long time ago--