FREE WHITEWATER

Nature

Daily Bread for 12.21.23: Winter

 Good morning.

Thursday in Whitewater will be cloudy with a high of 40. Sunrise is 7:22 and sunset 4:24 for 9h 01m 40s of daytime. The moon is a waxing gibbous with 70% of its visible disk illuminated.

Whitewater’s Ethics Committee meets at 5:00 PM and the Community Development Authority at 5:30 PM

On this day in 1968, Apollo 8 is launched from the Kennedy Space Center, placing its crew on a lunar trajectory for the first visit to another celestial body by humans.

By NASA/Bill Anders – http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/alsj/a410/AS8-14-2383HR.jpg, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=306267


Winter begins today at 9:27 PM and lasts until Tuesday, March 19th at 10:06 PM. 

It’s this libertarian blogger’s second-favorite season (after autumn). Winter is austere, and in that seasonal austerity one has fewer distractions. Spring and summer tempt, fall rewards and then cautions, but winter alone denies. Winter is the economic principle of scarcity plainly manifest. She limits and by limiting imposes choices: What will you do, from what will you refrain, and why? What matters to you, and what doesn’t? She will expect — and within her power compel — an answer.

Winter in our part of the world is cold, but she is beautifully cold. 


Vivaldi – Winter from The Four Seasons | Netherlands Bach Society:

Daily Bread for 12.12.23: The Geminids Meteor Shower

 Good morning.

Tuesday in Whitewater will be sunny with a high of 33. Sunrise is 7:16 and sunset 4:21 for 9h 04m 24s of daytime. The moon is new with 0.1% of its visible disk illuminated.

 Whitewater’s Public Works Committee meets at 6 PM

 On this day in 1941, Hitler declares the imminent extermination of the Jews at a meeting in the Reich Chancellery.


Amudalat Ajasa reports What to know about the Geminids, the best meteor show of the year:

The presentation started in late November and will wrap up on Christmas Eve, according to the American Meteor Society. Interestingly, the show will peak and end on the same dates as last year.

The moon won’t act as a spoiler during the peak of the shower because it will illuminate at 1 percent the evening of Dec. 13, according to the American Meteor Society. That means darker skies for viewing.

….

Since the Geminids originate from the constellation Gemini, which rises near sunset during this time of the year, skywatchers could start to see “shooting stars” clearly around 10 p.m., Rice said. But the best time to view is between midnight and 2 a.m.

“We’ll have a nice dark sky that will show meteors. The fact that it’s so close to the new moon means less light pollution,” Rice said.

If you can’t wish upon the shooting stars on Dec. 13, don’t fret! The show will go on for over a week after the peak — there will just be fewer meteors to see.

….

Look for darkness — this may be in a rural location, or if you can’t get to a rural location, look to the darkest part of the sky wherever you are.

Patience — just because there is an average count doesn’t mean that you’ll see that many meteors per hour.

Leave your phone inside — looking at a device before turning to the sky may ruin your innate night vision.

Get comfortable — bundle up and drink something warm if necessary while you wait for the show.


Acrobatic Woolly Opossum Puts Prehensile Tail Into Action At Panama Feeders:

Daily Bread for 12.10.23: Ice Age Trail Becomes Part of National Park Service

 Good morning.

Sunday in Whitewater will be cloudy with a high of 33. Sunrise is 7:15 and sunset 4:20 for 9h 05m 48s of daytime. The moon is a waning crescent with 6.5% of its visible disk illuminated.

 On this day in 1864 during his March to the Sea, Major General William Tecumseh Sherman’s Union Army troops reach the outer Confederate defenses of Savannah, Georgia.


Laura Schulte reports Ice Age Trail becomes part of the National Parks Service, opening the door to more resources:

Wisconsin’s Ice Age Trail is now a part of the National Park System, a change that will allow for more resources as organizers push to complete it.

U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin and National Park Service Director Chuck Sams announced the change, heralding the 1,200-mile-long trail that traverses some of Wisconsin’s best natural features, from St. Croix to Janesville and back up to Door County.

“The Ice Age trail also tells an important story about the history of Wisconsin and the abundant natural resources that have shaped our great state,” Baldwin said. “Literally running through the great north woods, over rolling hills and prairies, past inland lakes and waters, and finally winding up along Lake Michigan. This trail showcases some of the best that our state has to offer. “

The Ice Age, New England and North Country National Scenic Trails were all folded into the parks system, meaning each will remain part of the national scenic trail system but with more access to funding and other resources the system provides, such as official trail maps and brochures designed by the service.

….

The Ice Age Trail was started in the 1950s and is still under construction, with the Ice Age Alliance purchasing land along the trail’s winding path to fully connect it. It runs through both rural and urban areas, along the natural features created by glaciers during the last Ice Age.


Italian ‘boot,’ Sicily and Croatia captured from ISS using RED Dragon camera:

Friday Catblogging: The Return of Ocelots?

Embed from Getty Images Christine Dell’Amore writes Ocelots once roamed the U.S. Can we bring them back? (‘Ocelots are a quintessentially American cat—yet a single tropical storm could wipe them off the U.S. map. Will a pioneering new partnership make a difference?’): Only a few centuries years ago, the northern ocelot was a quintessential American…

Daily Bread for 12.3.23: Wisconsin’s Scenic Treasures | Northwoods

 Good morning.

Sunday in Whitewater will see morning flurries with a high of 38. Sunrise is 7:08 and sunset 4:21 for 9h 12m 50s of daytime. The moon is a waning gibbous with 65.7% of its visible disk illuminated.

  On this day in 1947, the first TV station in Wisconsin, WTMJ-TV in Milwaukee, is established. The seventeenth television station in the country, WTMJ-TV was the first in the Midwest.


Wisconsin’s Scenic Treasures | Northwoods:

Wisconsin’s Scenic Treasures: Northwoods continues the celebration of our state’s natural landscapes. This exploration of Wisconsin’s northern forests, lakes, parks and natural areas takes the viewer to widely cherished locales as well as lesser-known secluded spots. Experience this panoramic compilation of our treasured ‘Up North’ wonders.

Pufferfish receives stress-free checkups by swimming onto platform:

A 12-year-old pufferfish at the Melbourne Zoo has learned to swim onto a platform, so that it can receive a health checkup.

Daily Bread for 11.15.23: Wisconsin Life | Hike it Baby

 Good morning.

Wednesday in Whitewater will be sunny with a high of 61. Sunrise is 6:47 and sunset 4:31 for 9h 43m 50s of daytime. The moon is a waxing crescent with 5.6% of its visible disk illuminated.

Whitewater’s Park & Recreation Board meets at 5:30 PM.  

  On this day in 1864, Union General William Tecumseh Sherman begins his March to the Sea.


Wisconsin Life | Hike it Baby

Dini Dowd is a social media influencer and in her words “a stay-outside mom.” She travels the state with her husband and their daughter exploring Wisconsin’s lakes, parks and trails. She shares their trips on social media, helping other families plan their own expeditions and encouraging everyone to get outdoors.

Skaters glide across rare Alaska ‘ice window’:

Alaskan outdoor educator and ice rescue instructor Luc Mehl says an unusually cold and dry transition to winter created a rare ‘ice window’ in October on Rabbit Lake in Alaska.

Daily Bread for 11.6.23: Wisconsin Life | Naturalist

 Good morning.

Monday in Whitewater will be partly sunny with a high of 65. Sunrise is 6:36 and sunset 4:40 for 10h 04m 30s of daytime. The moon is a waning crescent with 39% of its visible disk illuminated.

  On this day in 1947, Meet the Press, the longest-running television program in history, makes its debut on NBC Television.


Wisconsin Life | Naturalist

M. Afi Lake is an avid gardener and naturalist who forages for food and medicine from unlikely plants. She can turn a nasty weed into a delicious dish.

A New Podcast From Serial: The Kids of Rutherford County

For over a decade, one Tennessee county arrested and illegally jailed hundreds, maybe thousands, of children. A four-part narrative series reveals how this came to be, the adults responsible for it, and the two lawyers, former juvenile delinquents themselves, who try to do something about it.

Daily Bread for 7.1.23: Earth

Good morning. Saturday in Whitewater will be cloudy with a high of 84. Sunrise is 5:20 AM and sunset 8:37 PM for 15h 16m 28s of daytime. The moon is a waxing gibbous with 94.9% of its visible disk illuminated. Whitewater’s Independence Holiday events continue today at the Cravath Lakefront: Wristband Session 12-4 PMFood Vendors…