2024 May – Aurora Borealis, A Nose for…, Away swim, Going Solo, Waiting
Aurora Borealis
So cool isn’t it?
And photo taken in East Anglia – wow.
Fun Facts: Caused by solar storms travelling towards earth and when some of the energy and small particles from the storm travel down the magnetic field lines at the north and south poles into Earth’s atmosphere. The particles interact with gases in our atmosphere resulting in beautiful displays of light in the sky. Oxygen gives off green or red light and Nitrogen produces purple, blue and pink. However the Earth’s magnetic field protects and deflects most of the particles and shields the planet from solar storms.
This is a good thing.
Because in 1989 a solar storm knocked out the Quebec’s power for nine hours. The U.S. military experienced it in 1972, when solar activity tiggered dozens of mines floating off the coast of Vietnam. And almost the entire world witnessed it in 1859 when, for about a day, the aurora borealis was so bright that it could be seen as far south as Colombia. People in the U.S. could read newspapers by the light in the sky. Gold miners woke up in the middle of the night, thinking it was morning.
The 1859 geomagnetic storm, now known as the Carrington Event, was the strongest in recorded history. It was caused when a wave of magnetized plasma launched from the Sun, traveling at over 1,500 miles per second hit Earth.
Just stop and think about that as a speed. Seriously.
Solar activity appears to come in cycles and the next solar peak is 2025. So very pretty but arguably beauty and the beast all wrapped up in one.
A nose for….
I have a nose for trouble and a brilliant tactical brain.
If I say so myself.
I am making it plain that there is trouble at t’mill because I haven’t had a treat for a while. My tactical move is to guilt trip anyone who is around into giving me a treat by staring very, very hard at them.
It usually works.
Sometimes it takes a while.
I have found that humans are not the most observant.
Sometimes I just look pitiful.
That tactic also works.
Mostly.
I have a pretty decent success rate.
For obtaining treats that is.
Away swim
Mum and friends have been on the (now) annual away swim trip. The intrepid explorers yomped (trespassed) over some land that was quite clearly marked ‘private; no admission’ to get to the river. There was a footpath as it happens but they took a shortcut.
Of course they did.
Picturesque.
Pub dins – yumbles.
Quick visit to Beccles airfield – quirky and fun – decent food and drink too.
Gorgeous evening.
Stopped at Ickworth on the way home.
Going solo
Yay!!! Very, very many congrats to Tindy. Jamie (left) and Alex (right) both Flight Instructors.
Waiting…..
This is a picture of me waiting patiently for Mum to come home.
I am only slightly stressed.
I expect I will be more stressed when she gets home.
She can be a bit of a handful.
But you all know that by now don’t you?
Saffron’s recommendations this month:
Music:
Ummm… let’s go for the Spice Girls this month. Yeah, you know this stuff don’t you?
- Say You’ll be There
- Who Do You Think You Are
- Wannabe
- Stop
- Spice Up Your Life
- 2 Become 1
- Baby Come Round
- Viva Forever
Reading:
White Holes by Carlo Rovelli and published by Penguin. Mum loves this science stuff. No idea really where the book is going but she gets immersed in the ideas. Her maths is awful so there’s not a hope of her actually understanding it. Not really. Ever. But simply mesmerising. And well written. Lightness and Magic.
Film:
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024). The fifth film and a prequel to Mad Max: Fury Road. The first film with Mel Gibson was released in 1979 – Whaaa…??? Mel was in the first 3 films; Tom Hardy did the 4th and now Jacob Tomuri – also a stuntman – pretty necessary skillset!
Lots of action, horribly violent post apocalypse movie. Not for the faint hearted. Mum saw it at the cinema – it was very loud. And very violent.