Expert Assessment of the Coming Blood Moon Tetrad

BLOOD MOON TONIGHT (Visible over North America): If anyone wants to watch the #Lunar #Eclipse Tuesday am, the best viewing time will start at 0100 CDT, & continue to 0530 CDT. Spica is the close bright star. Make what you will of the prophetic significance of the Eclipse alone, but the conjunction of the Moon at it's moment of full eclipse and Spica may also have some prophetic significance considering that Spica was integral to the signs connected with Christ's birth. Now as to what the prophetic significance of all of this is...Ya got me! It's better to keep things right with the Lord "all" the time, so that you don't have to worry. We live in prophetic times. Our job is to proclaim the Truth until He comes. Everything else is His responsibility. Shalom and God bless His Passover.

Passover and the Lunar Eclipse, AKA the Blood Moon...

Monday evening at Sunset is the beginning of Passover, the First of the yearly High Holy Feasts of the Lord in Judaism, & the oldest continuous celebration of Freedom on Earth.

Later, in the wee hours of the morning, is one of the rarest occurrences in Astronomy. Not just a full Lunar eclipse, but the first of "four" full Lunar eclipses this year & next, AKA Tetrad for four, and  Blood Moons because of how the Sun's light passes through the Earth's atmosphere, tinting the Moon's surface red.

That's all pretty cool, and I still remember my Father waking me to see a full eclipse sixty some odd years later, but that's not particularly special... however..., the fact that all four full eclipses occur, precisely on the High Holy Feasts of the Lord "IS" special! It hasn't happened very many times throughout all of history, & has always coincided with significant events in the history of Israel. If you would like to know more on that subject, go to:

Pastor Mark Blitz on Blood Moons

Don't know what you'll make of it, but I hope you'll enjoy.

Want to watch the Lunar Eclipse Tuesday am? Best viewing time will start approximately 0100 CDT, & continue to around 0530 CDT. The Moon is in Virgo, & Spica is the bright star in conjunction with the Moon. That's also pretty cool. Doesn't happen real often either. There's also Spiritual significance in Spica. Leave a comment if you want to know more.

Best wishes,
Frances

Night Sky: March 2009

In the spring of any year, not just the Year of Astronomy, there are lots of things to look for in the night sky. It’s a great time for the backyard astronomer in us all. Among the notable astronomy events are: Venus is leaving the evening sky; old constellations are at zenith; new constellations are visible; and the Vernal or Spring Equinox is about to occur. If you click on the pictures in this post, you will be able to see them in a larger size which will be easy to view and read.


Venus has been incredibly beautiful all winter, so please forgive me for not posting about a lovely event several days ago. On February 27th there was a close conjunction of Venus and the New Moon immediately after sunset. Unfortunately, we had cloud cover, and I forgot about it (What can I say, I was writing.). This picture, courtesy of Starry Night Astronomy Program, this is what it looked like right after full dark.


Keep Venus in your viewing schedule for the rest of the month. It’s leaving the evening sky on the March 27th when it has an inferior conjunction with the Sun. That’s fancy astronomer speak for crossing between the Earth and the Sun. DON’T TRY TO LOOK AT IT if you want to keep your eyes working properly. Venus will once more be visible as the Morning Star in April. (If you want to go out into a chilly morning to view it, more power to you. At that time of the morning, I’m usually writing for all that I’m worth, a mug of hot cocoa in one hand, a computer cuddled in my lap and the Supreme Pasha Zackery snuggled on my feet.) Your trivia for the day: Venus is moving toward the Earth when we see it in the evening. It is moving away from the Earth when we see it in the morning.

Taurus (Aldebaran), Orion (Betelgeuse), and Canis Major (Sirius) have been glorious in the winter sky. They are presently at their zenith in the evening and will soon be moving into the west. Before they leave us, there are several other constellations which I should like to bring to your attention. Directly to the north of Orion, and joined to the horn of Taurus is Auriga. It is shaped vaguely like a pentagon and has one bright star, Capella. This is another of the stars which Anne McCaffery uses as proper names for characters in her Science Fiction Romances (we writers steal wherever we can). Immediately to the east, almost the fourth corner of a diamond formed by Auriga, Taurus, and Orion is the constellation Gemini, the Twins. Their feet point toward Orion’s head. The two bright stars which form their heads are Castor and Pollux, the brothers of Helen of Troy and the navigators on Jason’s voyage to find the Golden Fleece.

There are two new constellations which are just coming into view in the east during the early evening. Cancer, the Crab, is just east of Gemini’s Castor and Pollux. You may not be able to view Cancer because it has no bright stars. I have a hard time with it. However, the next constellation, Leo, is just rising above the horizon at dusk. As the evening progresses, Leo is very easily recognized as the backwards “?” mark in the sky. Leo’s brightest star is Regulus, one of the ancient king stars and the heart of the lion. Look a little further down to the northeast, and you will see a small triangle of stars. Those stars are the haunches of the lion. The bright object immediately south of Leo’s haunches is Saturn. It’s not as bright as it sometimes is because its rings are not tilted far enough at this time for our viewing.

Last, but not least of the March astronomy events, is the Vernal or Spring Equinox on March 20th. This is the “moment” when Sun’s rays are directly perpendicular to the Earth’s surface at the equator, and when we count spring as beginning. It is also “commonly called” the moment when the Sun crosses the equator from the Southern to the Northern Hemisphere; however, that is a fallacious statement because it is the tilt of the Earth, not any movement of the Sun, which causes the event. Language makes it impossible to escape the ideas of our ancient ancestors. In any case, equinox simply means equal hours of day and night. This only occurs two times a year, on the spring and fall equinoxes. Most ancient calendars were calculated as beginning on the Vernal Equinox, and astrology still works on this basis, even though the signs in modern astrology are now totally out of sync with the astronomical positions of the stars. If you would like to make an interesting observation, keep a log of sunset and sunrise times and the resulting increase/decrease in hours of daylight where you live. You will be surprised at how fast the change occurs.

Have fun, and happy viewing,

Frances

Writing Science Fiction Romance

Real Love in a Real Future

Raccoon Astronomy

It's been a great week for astronomy. It's been a bad week for the raccoons.

Twice this week, raccoons have sacrificed themselves upon the electrical altar of the same high-voltage transformer, throwing half of our town into darkness. Both times, this happened well after sunset, with a ziiiit-boom, and flash of light that could be seen for miles in the instant before everything went black. No house lights. No street lights. No nothing! Both times I rushed outside into the frigid night to gaze into the sky. Oh my, but it was lovely. Not for the poor raccoons, of course, but for stargazers like me it was gorgeous.

The skies were severe clear both nights. The new moon wasn't yet bright enough to interfere with viewing. High in the western sky Venus is the brightest object visible, and will remain so through March. Directly overhead, is the red eye of Taurus, Aldebaran, and the Pleiades he guards. In the southeastern sky, Orion is riding high with Sirius and Procyon, the noses of his hunting dogs, bounding at his heels.

A few bits of trivia: Sirius is the brightest star that we can see from Earth, and quite a close neighbor, only 8.6 light years distant. The Greeks gave us the term "dog days of summer" from this star. It was the rising of Sirius with the dawn, which told the ancient Egyptians that the Nile was about to flood, and that they would have abundant food for the coming year. Sirius, Procyon, and Betelgeuse in Orion's shoulder, make the Winter Triangle.

Viewing all of that clearly was wonderful. However, the great thing for me was that, for a brief while, it was dark enough to see the Milky Way. That doesn't often happen in our light polluted world. Right now, in the early evenings, it stretches from the southeast to the northwest, moving to the west as the evening progresses. If you can follow a path near to Sirius, Orion, Gemini, Auriga, Perseus, and Cassiopeia, then you are in the neighborhood of the Milky Way. I hope that you get a chance to see it. It's worth it.

Happy Viewing,

Frances

Writing Science Fiction Romance

Real Love in a Real Future

Christmas Astronomy

The Reflection Nebula, NGC 1435, just because I think it's pretty for this time of year.

In my last Astronomy post, I said that I was going to write about the Christmas Star. This post is about Astronomy, not about religion. Nor does it espouse astrology. Modern Astronomy and astrology no longer have anything to do with one another; but, they did two thousand years ago. What I’m talking about here is archaeoastronomy, the science of astronomy studied in a historical, cultural context. This post is meant only to give you a few facts to think about. When all is said and done, each of us will decide what we wish to believe, regardless of anyone else’s logic. So come along with me as we dig up a few facts.

As a disclaimer, please be aware that, I am simply an amateur astronomer. Yet, although my degrees are not in Astronomy, I do check, and cross check my facts before giving them to you. What I have is an enquiring mind, equipped with a few patches of Velcro for making connections, and a really neat astronomy program called Starry Night. I highly recommend it if you should have a desire to feel totally superior, or even better yet... simply have some fun. It’s economical, easy to use, educational, and extremely entertaining. How can you lose?

Now, let’s get serious about Christmas Astronomy. The years 7 to 2 BC contained the some of the most spectacular astronomical displays ever. So let’s look at a few of them.

To get a proper appreciation for the “Astronomical Event” which has come to be known as the Christmas Star, we have to go back at least 2,500 years. We have to put ourselves into the minds of the people of the times. All ancient people studied the stars, and had been doing so for thousands of years. The one “possible” exception was the Jews, who were forbidden to use divination (Deuteronomy 18:10). Ancient people, everywhere, believed that destinies were foretold, and messages from the gods were announced by the stars in the heavens. Everyone, who was anyone, had their special constellation, star, and advisor.

At that time, there was no difference between an astrologer and an astronomer. Almost no decision was made without first consulting the handy-dandy court astrologer/astronomer - who also just happened to be the most highly educated guy around. With your future on the line, you wanted your best man on the job. This is very important, so put it in your trivia bag. We'll get back to it. The caveat was in the interpretation; and, of course, who was paying. Sometimes the astrologer/astronomer hit the jackpot, and sometimes he crapped out. Under the latter circumstances, as you can imagine, life expectancies were... dubious, at best.

In Astronomy, there is something called Precession. It is rather like a super calendar. The Earth wobbles on its axis like a top, and one wobble lasts about 27,000 years. Divide that by twelve and name each section after the sign of the zodiac in which the Sun rises on the vernal (spring) equinox, and you have the Age du jour. Two thousand years ago the Age of Aries was coming to an end, and the Age of Pisces was just beginning. However, because of the slow motion of the Earth in its wobble, and because of the lack of known boundaries of zodiacal constellations, it’s somewhat difficult (read: impossible) to establish the precise date of the beginning of the Piscean Age. But... everybody was looking for CHANGE!

In astrology, there are four Royal Stars, fixed roughly equally along the general course of the ecliptic, or path of the Sun. They are: Antares in Scorpio; Fomalhaut in the Southern Fish; Aldebaran in Taurus; and Regulus, the king of all the Royal Stars, in Leo, and incidentally the only one of the Royal Stars to be directly on the ecliptic. Perhaps that is why he got to be king! Your guess is as good as mine.

The planets were considered to be wandering gods, and Jupiter was the king of these wanderers, and carried the Hebrew name of Sedeq or “Righteousness.” Saturn was the next mightiest, and according to some sources, was known as the “protector of the Jews”. The thing is that Jupiter and Saturn were the astrological “big men on campus.” Where a planet hung out and with whom, had great portent for lowly mortals. Consider for a moment the international attention paid to the conjunction of Venus, Jupiter, and the Moon earlier this month, or the millennium... or even better yet, the daily astrology column of the local newspaper, and you get the idea. People were expecting...

In 12 BC, Halley’s Comet was visible. Ooooo, ominous! Still, it stirred people up. Lots of things were happening in the heavens, and people like the excitement.

In 7 BC, Jupiter and Saturn had triple conjunctions in Chez Pisces. This is a very rare event. For the two greatest planets to have, not just one, but three conjunctions (within one year) in the house of the new age was indicative of GREAT CHANGE. From time to time, Venus and Mercury also dropped in. By the spring of 6 BC, Mars had joined the party, adding more weight to the degree of changes to come. Astrologers all over the known world were looking for something BIG to happen.

THEN:
8/01/3 BC: Jupiter rose in the east, en te anatole, “in the first rays of the dawn.”
9/12/3 BC: First Jupiter and Regulus occulting conjunction: rising in the east and visible from 0230 until just before sunrise.
2/18/2 BC: Second Jupiter and Regulus conjunction: visible with full Moon from 1900 until 0530
5/7/2 BC: Third Jupiter and Regulus conjunction: visible after sunset, until 2400.
6/17/2 BC: Jupiter and Venus spectacular conjunction in Leo.
8/27/2 BC: Jupiter, Venus, Mars and Mercury conjunction in the east, just before dawn in Virgo. This places the Sun also in Virgo. Two days later the Moon joined the party.
10/13/2 BC: Jupiter and Venus have a close conjunction in Virgo and Jupiter moves westward in relation to the Sun and other planets.
12/15/2 BC: Jupiter reaches its furthest point westward, no longer moving against the background stars, and appears to stand still for almost a month. Just before dawn, is on the meridian due south of Jerusalem, in line with Bethlehem.
12/25/2 BC: Winter Solstice and Hanukkah.

Now, this is where is the significance of that “most highly educated” comment, which I told you to put into your trivia bag, comes in. Any ancient, who was a serious astrologer/astronomer, would have been familiar with the prophetic writings of a multitude of countries. For centuries, the Ancient Jews had prophecies, recorded in their sacred writings, of the coming of a chosen King. The most well known of these, Daniel 9:26-27, indicated that 3 to 2 BC was the time for the appearance of their Messiah. However, the Jews were not the only ones who had similar predictions recorded in their sacred scriptures. The Zoroastrians of Persia also had predictions of a coming Savior King in their bible, the Avesta. And the Avesta prophesied that there would be born to the Jews a King Messiah, and that His coming would be announced by a sign in the constellation Virgo. The world was certainly looking for CHANGE. They had the SIGNS!

All stellar and planetary positions were verified with Starry Night Bundle Edition 2.1 and Starry Night CSAP. For more on the Christmas Star, you might enjoy The Christmas Star by Barry Setterfield.

I hope that you have enjoyed this, and will want to do further research. May the Spirit of the Star of Bethlehem shine upon you and your home all year long.

Frances

Writing Science Fiction Romance

Real Love in a Real Future

The Pleiades Have Risen!

Wow! We have now officially (that is, according to me) entered the best star viewing season of the Astronomy year. Speaking of Astronomy Years, 2009 really has been officially designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the International Astronomical Union. Doesn’t that just get you all excited?

If your skies are clear, and your light pollution isn’t too overwhelming - boy, can you have some fun! Eight of the thirteen most brilliant stars visible from Earth and some of the most easily discernable constellations are now all coming into view. For me, the rise of the Pleiades star cluster is the herald of the viewing season to come, and the first star cluster which I found as an amateur astronomer.

For the last few nights, since a cold front cleared my part of North America, I have had extraordinarily clear viewing during my nightly constitutionals with the Supreme Poodle Pasha Zackery. I continue to try to interest him in the stars on our nightly outings; and although he is extremely intelligent, the glories of the sky pale in comparison to the fun of games of tag with his harem girl, MaxiCat. Children are so shallow. But, I digress, a crime which I am often guilty of.

Rising above the eastern horizon, just at sunset, are the Pleiades, my favorite of all the star clusters. I suppose that is because: 1) I can see it; 2) it was my first; and 3) it is so very beautiful. The glow that you see in the picture is a dust cloud, or reflection nebula, which surrounds the cluster. The cluster is 400 light years distant, about 13 light years across, and contains over 3000 stars. Crowded neighborhood! Astronomers, using infrared detectors have recently found a dusty disk that belongs to one young Pleiades star -- HD 23514. Can we say “planets” anyone? By the time that it is fully dark, the stars of the Pleiades are easily visible with the naked eye, and positively glorious through binoculars or a telescope. You can find them lying at the feet of Perseus. Considering the morals of the Greek gods, it’s a good thing that Perseus was an honorable man and so in love with Andromeda!

According to the Ancient Greeks, the Pleiades were the seven daughters of Atlas, who held up the skies. Seven was the number of stars which the ancients could see, hence the name “Seven Sisters.” These girls were, as are all daddies’ daughters, excessively beautiful. And being beautiful, they had a suitor, the lusty hunter Orion. The problem was that the greedy man wanted them all. Daddy Atlas was not amused. My next astronomy post will be about how Daddy Atlas protected his little girls’ virtue from Orion.

Tune in next week for the ongoing, Ancient Greek, soap opera of the stars.

Happy viewing,

Frances
Writing Science Fiction Romance

Real Love in a Real Future

All In the Family & The Siderial Year Marches On

In my last astronomy post, I told you how to find the Great Square of Pegasus, the winged horse upon which the ancient Greeks said Perseus rode to the rescue of the Princess Andromeda. Well, the Earth has moved along its yearly path and Pegasus is no longer in the eastern sky during the early evening. It’s now directly overhead, or as astronomers say, at zenith. About 9 PM, or 2100, for those of you on 24 hr time, step outside on a clear evening and look straight up. There Pegasus is, right over your head. This is the perfect time to pull out those old binoculars and take a look at the Andromeda Galaxy, two million light years distant. (Note: For your convenience, in the picture above, I have exaggerated the main stellar objects mentioned in this post.)

There are numerous other constellations which you can find by referencing Pegasus. As I told you, I think of the Andromeda constellation as the hind legs of Pegasus. Pegasus is immediately south of the Milky Way. Look just to the north of Andromeda, past the Andromeda Galaxy, and the next prominent grouping of stars which you will see is the Cassiopeia constellation. It’s obvious because it’s shaped like a “W”. She is usually depicted as sitting back on her throne admiring herself in a mirror. For some reason in the illustration below, she is holding a palm branch. Go figure. In any case, lovely lady she was to get her daughter into such trouble because of her vanity!

Cassiopeia sits right in the middle of the path of the Milky Way. This time of the year, the Milky Way stretches across the sky from the East to the West. If you look directly west from the “W” of Cassiopeia, the next bright star that you will see is Deneb, the tail feather of (Cygnus). Cygnus, the Swan, is flying down the Milky Way to meet Aquila, the Eagle, soon to set in the West. That bright star to the north of Cygnus and Aquila is Vega of the Lyra constellation. Remember the
Summer Triangle? It too is soon to set, and won’t be visible for many of us for the next six months.

Let’s get back to Cassiopeia and Andromeda. Cassiopeia mouthed off about how beautiful she was, and the gods took it out on Andromeda, declaring that she must be sacrificed to the sea monster. Now we can’t leave the fair maiden to a sea monster. He wouldn’t know what to do with a fair maiden anyway, would he? This is where Perseus comes into the picture... quite literally. Look to the northeast of Pegasus’s hind legs, or, if you will, Andromeda’s feet (the proper place for any man), and you will see a bright, crooked, curving “V” of stars. This is the mighty hero Perseus. Perseus was the son of the head guy of the Greek gods, Zeus, and of Danaë, a human princess. Perseus killed the snake haired monster, Medusa, and rode Pegasus to the rescue of Andromeda. They married and lived happily ever after.

An interesting little bit of trivia about Perseus: The tale of Perseus is the only story in all Greek mythology in which nothing negative is said about the hero. He is brave. He is handsome. And he is honorable. It is also the only Greek myth which gives its hero and heroine a happy ending... except, I’m still wondering about that mother-in-law.

If you have access to old movies, I think that you’ll find 1981’s CLASH OF THE TITANS, which covers this myth, to be lots of fun.

Happy viewing,

Frances

Writing Science Fiction Romance

Real Love in a Real Future

A Flying Horse... Oh My!

One of the really spectacular sights of the fall night sky is now visible in the early evening eastern sky. The constellations of Pegesus and Andromeda are rising above the northeastern horizon immediately after dark. They'll be visible all through the Fall and into Winter, so enjoy.

The body of Pegasus is also one of the more easily recognized asterisms, and is known as the Great Square. You can see why in the picture. After locating the Great Square, look to the southernmost star of the square and you are at the beginning of Pegasus's neck. Just picture a horse's neck and head, and you will see stars on the curve of the neck, the top of the head, and the nose. The northernmost star of the square is shared with the Constellation of Andromeda. I can't help but think that Andromeda looks more like the hind legs of the horse, but I've always had horses on the brain.

Pegasus was the winged horse ridden by Perseus to rescue the Princess Andromeda from the sea monster after her mother, Cassiopea, mouthed off about being the most beautiful woman in the world. It just goes to show that one should never brag in front of a god or goddess. They just might be paying attention and take offense. Why the Greek gods picked on poor Andromeda, I've never been able to figure out; but, even the ancient Greeks never claimed that their gods were fair.

If you happen to have a good set of binoculars, now is the time to get them out. Look in the pictures above. Follow the stars of Andromeda (the hind legs of Pegasus) and half way to the heels (girl or horse), look just a little upwards toward the zenith. There you will see a blurry spot. That is the Andromeda Galaxy. It is the fartherest object that we can see with the naked human eye. It's two million light years away, and it's coming to get us. *EG* No, it really is coming this way... in several billing years, so you don't have to worry tonight. It's breathtakingly beautiful, and about twice the size of your Milky Way. Just go out and enjoy the view.

Pegasus and Andromeda are two of five constellations related by the same Greek myth. I will be writing in other posts about them, so come back for another visit. You're always welcome.

Happy viewing,

Frances

Writing Science Fiction Romance
Real Love in a Real Future

Annd Heeereee's Sagittarius!!!

I think that I'm beginning to sound like Ed McMahon.

With the waning of the Moon, now is an excellent time for star gazing... that is, if you can see past the summertime haze, and city lights! Let's hope so.

This month, Sagittarius takes over center stage for the evening hours right after sunset.

Last month, I showed you how to find Scorpius. It has now progressed into the due South position, and will serve to show us the location of Sagittarius. After finding the great fish hook of Scorpius, look a little to the East. The next really bright object that you see is Jupiter. It is presently within the constellation of Sagittarius. Immediately to the West of Jupiter you will see a formation of stars that look like a 'teapot' (remember asterisms?). That is Sagittarius... well not all, but enough to know that you have found it.

To the ancient Greeks, Sagittarius was not just the Archer. He was the Centaur - who shot the Scorpion - who killed Orion - who... oh, never mind. Simply follow the top edge of the 'teapot's spout' (the arrow), and you will see that it points directly at Scorpius. There really is justice. The gods didn't allow Orion to go unavenged. *G*

However, myth is not the best thing about Sagittarius. When we look at Sagittarius, we are looking into the center of the Milky Way. The only reason that there is not an overwhelming glow from there is because there is so much dust between it and us. There is also a great, big, Black Hole there... eating, and eating... Cheery thought, huh? But, let your heart not be troubled. It is more than thirty thousand light years away. Even your grandchildren don't have to worry.

Happy viewing

Frances

Writing Science Fiction Romance

Real Love in a Real Future

The Summer Triangle...

Asterism: No, an asterism isn’t something vulgar. An asterism is a distinctive group of stars, but not a recognized constellation. The Big Dipper is an asterism within the Ursa Major constellation. In my experience, it’s often easier to spot the asterism and then puzzle out the constellation/s.

Tonight, through the magic of digital exaggeration, err...I mean manipulation, and the courtesy of Starry Night, I bring you one of the great asterisms of the summer sky – The Summer Triangle!
Soon after dark, look into the eastern sky. You will see one very bright star, Vega, and two more stars, lower down, that are not quite so bright. They are Deneb, to the North, and Altair, to the South. They form a huge right triangle, with Vega at the top right angle. This grouping of stars dominates the Northern Hemisphere’s summer sky and spans the Milky Way. Those of you in the Southern Hemisphere will see it rise in the extreme North East.

As the evening progresses, and more stars appear, you should be able to see the three constellations that make up the Summer Triangle asterism. Vega is the anchor star of the Lyra (Lyre) Constellation. To the ancient Greeks, this was Orpheus’s magic harp, you know, the grandmother of J.K Rowling’s Hogwarts’ harp. Deneb is the tail feathers of Cygnus (the Swan) flying down the middle of the Milky Way. Follow the line of stars south from Deneb, which looks like a cross within the Summer Triangle, and you and you have all of Cygnus, who was either Orpheus, trying to get his harp back, or Zeus, out for an illicit tryst with Leda. It all depended upon who you listen to.

The last bright star of the Summer Triangle is Altair. It is the north point of a diamond shaped constellation named Aquila (the Eagle), which is flying up the side of the Milky Way toward Cygnus. Altair is the head or beak of Aquila as Zeus, again out for an illicit tryst, but this time with Ganymede, a Trojan boy. Looks to me like he dropped the poor kid, but what can you expect from a pervert. Zeus was a randy old goat, and not especially particular about where he randied. He was one of our original shape shifters, and I don’t think that it’s any wonder that his wife, Hera, was always in a murderous mood. You’ve really got to have sympathy for the woman even if she was a goddess.

Have fun, and happy viewing,

Frances

Writing Science Fiction Romance

Real Love in a Real Future

I'm doing the Happy Dance!

I've been working diligently for some weeks on a short story set as a pre-prologue for my novel length Science Fiction Romance, THE HUSBAND. That's right, my novel has a title (in my mind at least). I had not actually finished THE HUSBAND; so, I would just tell people that I was writing a Science Fiction Romance. I hesitated, however, to claim the august title of writer. Until that crucial, orgasmic moment, when I would reach the end of a work, I still considered myself to be a Wirgin!

However, in the wee hours of this morning, I officially lost my Wirgin status. I typed THE END on my short story, "SCARS: An Excerpt from The Solaris System Watcher Chronicles". I are now a writer.

The Set-up:
Following a catastrophic war on Homeworld, humans have been scattered to other star systems within the galaxy. As these people adapted to their new worlds, first technology was lost, and over thousands of years, all memory of their origins on the Homeworld of Solaris System faded.

The remnant left on Homeworld have worked hard to reclaim their planet from devastation, and have turned it into a paradise. Technology has flourished, and they can now travel between the stars. Yet, they have never forgotten those who were exiled to other worlds. Therefore, the Watchers of Homeworld walk anonymously among those exiles, to monitor and to help them. But they are forbidden to interfere without permission.

The hero of SCARS is such a man. In SCARS, the hero, Joran, is called upon to rescue the only heir to a principality that is experimenting with freedom on a planet which has never known any freedom. In this rescue, Joran acquires the scars which his Lady will find in THE HUSBAND. What kind of man would willingly submit to torture in order to save a child... or even save an enemy?

As I told you, I started my blog, Frances Writes, as shameless self promotion as a writer. My next step in preparing to become a published author will be to build a website. SCARS is going to be a freebie on that website. I will keep you posted upon the progress of that endeavor. It's like when I started blogging, "Miss Scahlett, I don't know nothin' 'bout building no web sites!"

Frances

Writing Science Fiction Romance
Real Love in a Real Future

Scorpius Encore...

I said Friday that I would post another image of Scorpius. I had to play around with this image from Starry Night to get it to reproduce where you can see it online. That involved exaggerating the stars of the constellation so that they can be seen on your monitor somewhat similarly to what the naked eye will see. Black rectangles in blogs excite less than no interest. *G* The bright reddish star is Antares. The bright object to the far left of the picture is Jupiter. The diagonal smudge behind the hook of Scorpius is the Milky Way as it appears on an exceptionally dark and clear night. This is the way the sky will look tonight, just after 2300 CST.



Happy viewing,



Frances



Writing Science Fiction Romance

Real love in a Real Future

Annd Heeereee's Scorpius!!!

Have I got a treat for you. With the help of the Starry Night astronomy program and a little digital manipulation on my part, I hope that I can make it easier for you to find and enjoy one of my favorite sights of the Summer sky. It is early Summer in the Northern Hemisphere, and the one of the most beautiful constellations of the sky is rising in the Southeast right after dark. If you are in the Southern Hemisphere, this is your beautiful Winter constellation, which rises in the East. It's Scorpius. The really bright, reddish star at its center is Antares. Its name means, the rival of Ares (Mars); and it is the heart of the Scorpion and one of the four, ancient Royal Stars. This negative image shows the major stars and why so many ancient cultures called it after the scorpion. The ancient Greeks said that Scorpius killed Orion, poor guy. That's why it is on the opposite side of the ecliptic, or zodiac, from Orion. The two really don't get along. Never hang out together. Sad but true, some people hold grudges over the littlest things. *G*

From a different perspective, Scorpius is call the Maui's Fish Hook by the Polynesians. One look at the constellation and you can see why. The demi-god Maui was supposed to have pulled up the islands with it. The Polynesians were relating to what was important in their world view... land and fish.

The very first time that I saw Scorpius clearly, I was in Hawaii. My first thought was that it looked rather like a diamond necklace hanging in the sky. You see? It all depends upon your point of view. Maybe it's true that diamonds are a girl's best friend. For summer, Scorpius is definitely one of mine.

I am having trouble with the original image that I wanted to include as a naked eye view. I will try to come back and edit it in later. Please be patient with me. Don't miss the opportunity to see this beautiful constellation on your next clear, dark evening.

Happy Viewing.

Frances

Writing Science Fiction Romance
Real Love in a Real Future

My Journey to the Stars Begins

Once upon a time, long before the dinosaurs roamed the earth, there was a little girl who wanted to know about the stars. But, even before there was that little girl, there was a little boy who ran away to sea to become a ship’s officer. He was my father, and he had wonderful stories to tell about traveling the world, and navigating by the stars. I liked the idea that you could know where you are, anywhere on Earth, simply by looking at the stars.

“Which stars did you use, Daddy?”
“Why, we used Polaris, and Arcturus, and Betelgeuse, and others.”
“I want to see?”
“Arcturus is that star right up there. See it?”
“Where Daddy? I can’t see it.”

It never occurred to anyone that I needed glasses. I got my glasses; yet, I could never quite get the stars. However, I didn't forget how very much I wanted to know them. I did learn to recognize the Big Dipper and Cassiopeia. Because I had found the Big Dipper, I found Polaris, but that was about it. The rest of the sky was beyond me. I read everything that the Encyclopedia Britannica and the National Geographic offered, but I just couldn’t seem to make sense of those star charts. For years, my secret desire languished. But, my time was coming. I was writing a book! Science Fiction Romance Writer was on the case.

Spring Star Note:

Just after dark, get the darkest location that you can find. Look North by Northwest (Thank you, Mr. Hitchcock), and depending upon your latitude, you will see the Big Dipper. It's a ladle or plough shaped group of stars. In England, it is called the Plough. If you are in the Northern Hemisphere, it will be high in the sky. If you are in the Southern Hemisphere, it will be low, or partially below the horizon.

The Big Dipper is supremely important to navigators, not only because the two stars on the end of the bowl, or of the plow, point directly to Polaris, the North Star, but also because the stars in its handle point to Arcturus. Follow the arc of the handle, and the next bright star is Arcturus. It will be just to the East of the highest point in the sky for those in the mid northern latitudes, or high in the northern sky for those of you south of the equator.

Every civilization in the history of the world has used Polaris and Arcturus to navigate the seas. Our modern astronauts, space station, and telescopes are irrevocably tied to the Argonauts of ancient Greece, as well as the voyagers of ancient Polynesia. Cool, huh?

Happy viewing and writing,

Frances

Writing Science Fiction Romance

Real Love in a Real Future

Fireflies and Stars...

I just came in from taking the great Pasha Zack for his late night constitutional, and I want to share the magic while it’s still fresh. While the Pasha was indulging his passion of playing tag with his harem girl, Maxie Cat, I was indulging my passion of watching stars and fireflies. It doesn’t do any good to try to watch the Pasha at night. He’s blacker than ink, so I might as well look at the skies while he and Maxie have their fun.

Tonight is beautiful and clear. It’s the sort of late spring evening when crickets sing, and children once loved to be outside, playing hide and seek, watching the stars, and catching fireflies. No matter how many fireflies we caught, we always released them before bedtime. I wonder if children do that any more. Sometimes, as it is tonight, it was a little difficult to tell where the fireflies ended and the stars began. The only difference seemed to be that the fireflies moved and we thought the stars didn’t. I still love it!

The Science Fiction Romance that I am writing was born out of the most dangerous question which a fertile imagination can conceive... What if? (More about that another time.) I played with that question until I had worked out the major concepts of my future world. But fleshing out scenes and characters required more work.

It was just such a night as this, several years ago, when I thought... How would a person react to seeing stars for the very first time? What if that person came from a world which was largely covered with clouds? What would that person think of fireflies if he or she came from a superstitious world which had no insects? They were far too good premises to let slip away. So, in the book they went, and not to be released at bedtime.

This time of the year, if you have the opportunity to go out shortly after dark, and look directly overhead, Leo is just past zenith (straight up, and a little to the west). You will see two bright objects fairly close together. One is the star, Regulus, and the other is the planet, Saturn. If you watch them carefully, over a number of nights, you will see Saturn gradually moving East in relation to Regulus. If you have access to a telescope, Saturn is still at its nearest and quite spectacular. Don’t miss it.

Since the astronomy plays a huge role in my future world, many of my future posts will have more about how stars became an obsession of mine. If you would like to learn more, the Space.com link in my Very Fun list is an excellent place to start.

Happy viewing,

Frances

Writing Science Fiction Romance
Real Love in a Real Future