Nostr notes by iangriffin

anyone can google analemma. That's in the text. I genuinely ...

2024-11-18T09:54:44Z

In reply to nevent1q…fruz
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anyone can google analemma. That's in the text. I genuinely think the "rules" here are rather stupid. Obviously other opinions are welcome.

I'm quite secretly annoyed by the whole slightly fascist ...

2024-11-18T09:44:45Z

In reply to nevent1q…aan7
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I'm quite secretly annoyed by the whole slightly fascist approach to alt text thing here as the text is usually ok. That being said, the analemma is beautiful and is the result of everyday pictures.

So OK. I spent a year of my life getting this picture. Every day ...

2024-11-18T09:37:51Z

So OK. I spent a year of my life getting this picture. Every day at 12:30 (winter) and 1:30pm (summer). Some bugger jogged the camera in winter but bloody hell It's an analemma! #beauty #analemma #NewZealand #astronomy

YEEEES! Another Analemma done!!! #analemma #success #beauty ...

2024-11-18T07:49:16Z

YEEEES! Another Analemma done!!! #analemma #success #beauty #patience

Goodnight Mr.Moon! A timelapse of this morning’s moonset just ...

2024-11-17T17:18:46Z

Goodnight Mr.Moon! A timelapse of this morning’s moonset just now. #moon #moonset

I've just posted a new post on Substack. ...

2024-11-16T03:25:04Z

I've just posted a new post on Substack. https://iangriffin.substack.com/p/lessons-in-science-engagement #astronomy #newzealand #badwriting

Another part of the moon I managed to photograph last night is ...

2024-11-12T00:01:54Z

Another part of the moon I managed to photograph last night is known as Rupes Recta or the straight wall. Located close to the crater Birt, the straight wall is a 100km long linear fault on the surface of the moon, that is visible as a dark line near first quarter moon. #moon #astronomy #NewZealand

Here's a picture I took of the lunar crater Copernicus last ...

2024-11-11T19:56:59Z

Here's a picture I took of the lunar crater Copernicus last night. It is about 93km across and the base of the crater is about 4km deeper than the surrounding lunar surface. The central peak rises more than 1km! I've always imagined standing atop the rim and looking into the stunning lunar feature! #moon #astronomy #NewZealand

here’s the telescope with son using it for scale. ...

2024-11-11T19:45:33Z

In reply to nevent1q…wjz5
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here’s the telescope with son using it for scale.

Another image from last night; this shows the crater Bulladius ...

2024-11-11T19:41:54Z

Another image from last night; this shows the crater Bulladius (prominent crater with central peak upper left) and the fascinating horseshoe lava flooded crater Lubiniezky in Mare Nubium, the moon's "sea of clouds". Taken last night using a 150mm refractor. #moon #astronomy #NewZealand

It was a lovely calm clear night this evening here in Ōtepoti, ...

2024-11-11T10:54:09Z

It was a lovely calm clear night this evening here in Ōtepoti, so, rather than watch the last episode of "The Diplomat" I decided to fire up the telescope and do some imaging of Saturn and the moon. Here's Saturn. Its rings are nearly edge on to Earth at the moment. #saturn

Crikey! I won the "smartphone" section of this year's ...

2024-11-09T20:16:37Z

Crikey! I won the "smartphone" section of this year's NZ Astrophotography competition with this image of the Mother's day aurora...... Congrats to all the other winners! https://nzastrocompetition.com/winners-2024/ #NewZealand #astronomy #photography

Yet another image from my trip to Mount John. This is NGC 1360, a ...

2024-11-03T22:42:58Z

Yet another image from my trip to Mount John. This is NGC 1360, a planetary nebula in the constellation Fornax. Sometimes called the Robin's Egg nebula, it is estimated to be more than 1700 light years from Earth. #astronomy #NewZealand

So I basically spent 2 nights getting this image of the Tarantula ...

2024-11-03T10:56:19Z

So I basically spent 2 nights getting this image of the Tarantula nebula in the Large Magellanic Cloud. It's a mosaic. Of 4 sky positions. As seen using a 0.6M telescope. #astronomy #NewZealand

Yeay! Made the front page of spaceweather.com ...

2024-11-03T06:25:57Z

Yeay! Made the front page of spaceweather.com https://spaceweather.com

Wow. Tonight had it all here on Mount John. We started in a ...

2024-11-02T13:41:08Z

Wow. Tonight had it all here on Mount John. We started in a blizzard of snow and ended the night with a blizzard of solar particles visible in the sky! #aurora #auroraaustralis #NewZealand

I feel so lucky. I'm sitting atop Mount John, the wind ...

2024-11-02T03:34:21Z

I feel so lucky. I'm sitting atop Mount John, the wind blasting outside at 70kph, and I've just finished processing another image I took here last night. This is the core of the Tarantula Nebula, in the Large Magellanic Cloud. Taken with a camera that "kind of" (long story) sees the sky the way your eyes do. If they were ~80% quantum efficient... I love the colours I see in the nebula and the stars! I'm also looking forward to another night on the telescope tonight! #astronomy #NewZealand

Here's what I said on Newstalk ZB this morning about the run ...

2024-10-26T22:52:39Z

Here's what I said on Newstalk ZB this morning about the run up to Solar Maximum. Note I didn't choose the headline! https://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/on-air/the-sunday-session/audio/dr-ian-griffin-astronomer-and-otago-university-director-on-the-sun-hitting-peak-solar-energy/

Here's another image taken a few nights ago when I was at ...

2024-10-19T21:15:19Z

Here's another image taken a few nights ago when I was at Mount John. This is the heart of the Tarantula nebula seen at full moon through a set of narrowband filters. #astronomy #NewZealand

Ok peeps. I’m slowly populating my herbs and spices draw in my ...

2024-10-18T23:47:18Z

Ok peeps. I’m slowly populating my herbs and spices draw in my new kitchen. What herbs and spices are missing? Opinions welcome! #herbs #spices

Boom. Got the comet! A very very tough observation in twilight ...

2024-10-16T08:43:00Z

Boom. Got the comet! A very very tough observation in twilight and with bloody mountains in the way! #comet #NewZealand

This was a one second exposure of the aurora australis on Friday ...

2024-10-13T10:20:19Z

This was a one second exposure of the aurora australis on Friday night.. Let me say that again. This picture was formed in less than one human heartbeat. Yet the sky was on fire, magnetic forces were crafting beauty in Earth's fragile atmosphere. Wow. Just wow. #aurora #auroraaustralis #NewZealand #astronomy

Just for larks. During the big auroral storm of a couple of ...

2024-10-12T19:34:26Z

Just for larks. During the big auroral storm of a couple of nights ago, I fired up one of my old analogue cameras. Unfortunately I only had 100 ISO film. Here's a roughly ten-minute exposure taken using a 6x12 Tomiyama panoramic camera which I developed myself last night., #analogue #film #aurora #NewZealand

Ok here’s a quick and dirty (and not super great) Timelapse of ...

2024-10-12T00:18:17Z

Ok here’s a quick and dirty (and not super great) Timelapse of last nights epic Aurora as seen through my fisheye lens. Apologies for the spots of dirt but some buggers sprayed dirt on it as they drove past at high speed! #aurora #NewZealand #auroraaustralis

To be honest the best way to see the sheer scale of the aurora ...

2024-10-11T20:10:28Z

To be honest the best way to see the sheer scale of the aurora last night (other with the naked eye which was incredible!) was to use an all sky fisheye lens. Here's one of the images taken from Papanui Inlet here in New Zealand #aurora #auroraaustralis #NewZealand

Another image from last night's aurora. This feed may be a ...

2024-10-11T20:06:37Z

Another image from last night's aurora. This feed may be a bit aurora rich for the next few hours/days! #aurora #auroraaustralis #NewZealand

Last night's aurora australis here in Dunedin was insane. I ...

2024-10-11T20:02:51Z

Last night's aurora australis here in Dunedin was insane. I shot 4200 images with 5 cameras! Here's one image taken at 23:16 local time #aurora #auroraaustralis #NewZealand

About to go on TV1 to blather on about comets and auroras! Wish ...

2024-10-10T17:42:14Z

About to go on TV1 to blather on about comets and auroras! Wish me luck. By the way a massive aurora has just kicked off! #aurora #newzealand

WOW. Just wow. Going through my shots from last night's ...

2024-10-08T19:43:47Z

WOW. Just wow. Going through my shots from last night's aurora and found this corker from Hoopers Inlet taken at 21:20. What an absolutely amazing night! #aurora #NewZealand #astronomy

Thanks... this was just the GFX camera's native capture. i ...

2024-10-08T12:52:23Z

In reply to nevent1q…r476
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Thanks... this was just the GFX camera's native capture. i didn't enhance it with any photoshop jiggery-pokery!

You always know that when you see a dancing aurora over Hereweka ...

2024-10-08T12:26:38Z

You always know that when you see a dancing aurora over Hereweka it's a good night. Couple that with no wind and gorgeous reflections, I think we can all raise a glass to Ngā kahukura o Hinenuitepō. #aurora #auroraaustralis #NewZealand

And then the aurora gods went berserk. Here's a picture taken ...

2024-10-08T11:30:17Z

And then the aurora gods went berserk. Here's a picture taken at 21:23. The sky was nuts! #aurora #auroraaustralis #NewZealand

What a night of aurora australis here in the deep south of New ...

2024-10-08T11:28:41Z

What a night of aurora australis here in the deep south of New Zealand. This is how my night began... #aurora #auroraaustralis #NewZealand

Steve has graced us with his presence in an awesome auroral ...

2024-10-08T09:05:04Z

Steve has graced us with his presence in an awesome auroral display here in Dunedin. Just awesome! #aurora #NewZealand

The motions of the solar system are relentless. Comets go round ...

2024-09-28T17:34:27Z

The motions of the solar system are relentless. Comets go round the sun, some taking millions of years to do so. Stargazers in the deep south of New Zealand had a brief glimpse of this dusty cosmic snowball this morning but, by golly it was hard to see with the increasingly long days as we head towards summer. #beauty #comet #NewZealand

Fun at the observatory. Watching the clocks go forward here in ...

2024-09-28T14:00:40Z

Fun at the observatory. Watching the clocks go forward here in New Zealand!

This was me walking down to the accomodation block at sunrise ...

2024-09-28T00:44:38Z

This was me walking down to the accomodation block at sunrise after a super night of astronomy. Can you see my shadow on the dome? I was trying to point to the sun :-)

The real reason I'm at Mount John this weekend is to test a ...

2024-09-27T19:35:49Z

The real reason I'm at Mount John this weekend is to test a new camera on one of the telescopes. This is the first light image! A single 15 minute exposure of NGC 1532. Quite happy with this! Now time for bed. Hopefully it will be clear tonight as well! #astronomy #galaxies #newzealand

So I had (ahem) several cameras running this morning. Here's ...

2024-09-27T18:02:47Z

So I had (ahem) several cameras running this morning. Here's another view of C/2023 A3 Rising over the southern alps as seen from Mount John here in New Zealand. #astronomy #NewZealand #comet

Wow, another day, another splendid view of Comet C/2023 A3. ...

2024-09-27T17:57:01Z

Wow, another day, another splendid view of Comet C/2023 A3. Here's the view from the Mount John Observatory this morning! #comet #NewZealand #astronomy

Just for fun here’s a timelapse of comet 2023 A3 rising over ...

2024-09-27T17:18:20Z

Just for fun here’s a timelapse of comet 2023 A3 rising over the mountains beside Lake Tekapo #comet #tinelapse

Christchurch: Can we have a luxury covered stadium at taxpayer ...

2024-09-26T01:07:00Z

Christchurch: Can we have a luxury covered stadium at taxpayer expense for the 6 days a year it will be used? Govt (of either shade) Sure.... take our money. Dunedin: Can we have a modern fit for purpose hospital please? We train an awful lot of Drs for the whole country Govt (both shades) nah you don't matter have a teeny tiny shed. Oh and by the way here's a new medical school North Island. South Island needs to declare independence! #stupidgovts

Like 4 tiny Daniel Craigs a quartet of Yellow Eyed Penguins ...

2024-09-16T07:36:09Z

Like 4 tiny Daniel Craigs a quartet of Yellow Eyed Penguins emerge from the surf to celebrate their victory in Bird of the Year. Now let's save these beautiful creatures to make sure they survive! #yelloweyedpenguin #birdoftheyear #hoiho #OtagoMuseum

Star trails and an aurora. Lake Aviemore, Otago, May 12 2024. ...

2024-09-09T01:10:15Z

Star trails and an aurora. Lake Aviemore, Otago, May 12 2024. #aurora #startrails #NewZealand

Moonset, 6th August 2024. #moon #moonset #NewZealand ...

2024-09-07T09:26:31Z

Moonset, 6th August 2024. #moon #moonset #NewZealand

Wow if it’s clear where you are go and look at Venus and the ...

2024-09-05T06:36:01Z

Wow if it’s clear where you are go and look at Venus and the crescent moon! They are beautiful right now

Hello my name is Ian, and I am somewhat obsessed by the way Earth ...

2024-09-02T10:33:50Z

Hello my name is Ian, and I am somewhat obsessed by the way Earth rotates. I love star trails and sun trails....

So… I was beguiled by a planetary orb light I saw in a shop. ...

2024-08-26T01:49:41Z

So… I was beguiled by a planetary orb light I saw in a shop. Had it installed today in the hallway. Hoping Mrs. G doesn’t notice it… #hidinginplainsight

Here's a picture of the sun I took yesterday. The number of ...

2024-08-24T22:18:20Z

Here's a picture of the sun I took yesterday. The number of sunspots is astounding at the moment! #sun #astronomy #NewZealand

Tonight, it was cloudy in Dunedin. Instead of my usual star trail ...

2024-08-24T09:46:47Z

Tonight, it was cloudy in Dunedin. Instead of my usual star trail images, I decided to take some pictures in the harbour because the bioluminescent krill were back. Here's a 4-minute exposure showing the dancing krill. You can thank me later! #krill #bioluminescence

Hilarious. Famous management guru Tom Peters is boasting about ...

2024-08-22T08:43:58Z

Hilarious. Famous management guru Tom Peters is boasting about leaving Twitter. Those of us who left the day Musk took over and deleted our accounts are showing why we are better management gurus than him. Perhaps it’s about values rather than likes and followers.

It's that night again! Every year on 21/22 April and 21/22 ...

2024-08-21T06:32:55Z

It's that night again! Every year on 21/22 April and 21/22 August, the sun sets directly behind the Mount Cargill Antenna here in Dunedin as seen from my deck. The antenna is 7.55km from my deck. Look at the beautiful Sunspots which are 150 million km from my deck! #sunspots #sun #NewZealand

There's an aurora blazing away at the moment. If the sky is ...

2024-08-12T09:01:49Z

There's an aurora blazing away at the moment. If the sky is clear where you are GET OUT! Here's a picture of STEVE i took earlier tonight,.... #aurora #auroraaustralis #NewZealand

So... a quick trip out to spot the fading aurora. I fired up my ...

2024-08-11T10:31:12Z

So... a quick trip out to spot the fading aurora. I fired up my favourite camera and sat cross-legged beside Hoopers Inlet. As the sky turned, as the sealife made its sounds, as waves crashed upon Allens beach, I smiled and enjoyed the view. #beauty #NewZealand #startrails

nope. The supermarket doesn't have Music. Also (I should ...

2024-08-07T09:12:02Z

In reply to nevent1q…vha8
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nope. The supermarket doesn't have Music. Also (I should point out) I am personally partially deaf and have to wear a badge pointing it out because deafness is quite hard to understand for most people. Maybe I just want to hear sound while people with headphones want to cut it out!

I must be turning into a grumpy old man. Today I saw about 15 ...

2024-08-07T08:27:35Z

I must be turning into a grumpy old man. Today I saw about 15 people walking around the supermarket wearing enormous pairs of headphones. Why are so many people trying to cut themselves off from society? Blatantly saying I'm not interested in the world around me. #stoptheworldIwantotgetoff

Moonset this evening as viewed from my deck was pretty ...

2024-08-06T06:50:23Z

Moonset this evening as viewed from my deck was pretty spectacular! The 1.6 day old moon was just 3% illuminated as it set behind the hills that embrace Otago Harbour. #moon #moonset #Dunedin #NewZealand