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Archive for September, 2009

Using Heavens-Above.com

September 22nd, 2009 Ross No comments

It has come to my attention that there continues to be a lot of confusion about what is happening in the night sky. I’m currently doing my teaching-assistantship at the University of Alberta’s Observatory, where I tutor students interested in learning about amateur astronomy, and expose the public to the wonders of our (visible) universe.

ISS

One of my all-time favourite tools for predicting interesting events in the sky is Heavens-Above.com. With the website you can check the configuration of the planets and stars for almost any night (a reasonable time past and present), check the rise and set times of the Sun and Moon, and predict what satellites will be visible, and where and when they’ll appear in the sky. I’ve even found it useful for identifying an object after I’ve seen it. I’ll give you a quick run down of how to use it and what cool things you can see (no telescope or binoculars required)!

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Actun Tunichil Mukal Recap

September 13th, 2009 Ross No comments

Actun Tunichil Mukal was absolutely my favourite part of my Mayan Adventure. I can’t believe I didn’t write a post about this while I was on my trip. Blame it on my inability to find an internet cafe in San Ignacio. That or spending too much time at a bar called Faya Wata:

Mexico 2008 999

The ATM cave was so cool that I’m going to hit you with a read more link to get the rest of the goodness, see you after the jump!

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Mayan Adventure Trip Roundup

September 6th, 2009 Ross No comments

It’s been a year since my trip and I’m itching to write down my last thoughts on my Mayan Adventure so I can start planning my next big undertaking. The trip spanned 22 days, 3 countries and countless adventures. Because of the unreliable internet and the fact that I didn’t bring a computer along with me, I posted relatively few of the over 1500 pictures I took over the course of the trip. In the gallery below, I’ve selected some of my favourite pictures from the trip to help supplement the writing that I did. Hit the read more link below the picture to read my final impressions and see the photo gallery.

Mexico 2008 339 Read more…

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