Zodiacal Light From Glenshane - March 7th-14th

[brianb]

I saw it again this evening (9th) though not as well as yesterday, the sky is hazier which accentuates the light dome from Portrush to my west.

[markt]

3rd night in a row watching the Zodiacal Light, this time shared the experience with Dr. Andy McCrea and his wife from the IAA up on the Glenshane Pass. We watched the ZL for 1hr 10min's, Andy confirmed it was brighter than the Milky Way. Fantastic session. Will post images shortly

Superb Martin, I look forward to the pickies

I've just not had clear skies at the right times since the weekend. Lovely and clear in the morning when I have to go to work, then cloudy by hometime.  I will look though next time it is clear on an early evening from the loft window.  How long is the zodiacal light favourable for viewing from our latitudes?

[brianb]

How long is the zodiacal light favourable for viewing from our latitudes?

Sttepness of the ecliptic, the bit we're getting at the moment is about as steep as it gets but it should be reasonable until the moon gets round to the evening sky, and then in the next moonless period ... but not into May.

[martinastro]

Nice work again Brian!.

Mark, I hope you get to see it, look to the W from 20.00 to 20.30 along the ecliptic and you should see it. Best of luck.

Some images from the 9th with Andy, ZL, stars and Milky Way. ZL is on images, 2,3, and 4.

[markt]

Lovely shots Martin, will take a look tonight if it remains clear.

[martinastro]

Thanks Mark, best of luck. I was going to give it a miss tonight but I'm very tempted to go back out again...

[rjgjr]

Love these shots Martin, looks like you had a great time!

[martinastro]

Thanks very much Richard, I had a fantastic time.

Went back up again tonight since the weather is expected to turn cloudy after this so thought I would have one last go for the ZL. Turned out to be a good decision, it was the best view I've had yet, spotted it early at 19.40 UT and watched it until 20.30 UT. It was remarkable, incredible shape, and 45 degrees tall, even noted subtle blue-green colours within at one stage. Again, it was brighter than the Milky Way in Cygnus. This might be my last session with it until the next dark period, but who knows. Four nights in a row is a personal record for me. I'm glad I made one last effort to enjoy it all by myself. Here are two images, the last is 7 min's long at ISO400.

[Paul]

Saw it tonight! This from the Antrim Hills above Cairncastle - some LP from Ballymena but not bad - very clear visually - brighter than the Milky Way but much less distinct, and that makes it harder to identify as a specific feature of the sky....

[martinastro]

Excellent Paul, well done on the ZL capture, that must make 7 people now who have seen it from NI in the last few nights, that's a great success!. The ZL will remain visible until April so plenty of time to get shooting. I can see it very clearly on the image!

[brianb]

that must make 7 people now who have seen it from NI in the last few nights

Out of the 700,000 who've actually seen the sky.

When did we vote to allow light pollution to get this bad?

[markt]

Great shots martin and Paul, it was cloudy again for me at ZL time - so I went out for a curry instead... 

[martinastro]

Thanks Mark, keep watching, you will see it for sure.

Brian, I know how you feel, the LP in NI is dreadful, it seems one can't escape from it at all, often I have found a good dark spot in the country only for it to be destroyed by one single house security light left on all night long destroying any photo opps, people are so inconsiderate, why must an outdoor light be on all night for?. That's nothing compared to the football pitch I saw a few nights ago, it was closed - nobody here- but the huge flood lights remained on for a long time, the light was going straight up into the sky - an absolute disgrace. Something needs to be done about it before it's too late.

I believe the ZL does vary in brightness due to the variation in density of dust particles in the disk. It really does look slightly different in brightness each night.

[martinastro]

Zodiacal light was incredible tonight from Glenshane, best I've ever seen it, can't believe I have observed it five times in a week. It had a blue colour and passed directly over the Pleiades, so well defined, large, and bright...amazing. It was fun taking images up there, the wind was so strong it rocked the car!, however it helped produce a great sky with no gunge.

[martinastro]

Here's an image from March 14th just as twilight was slipping away below the mountains.