Grayskies

I am going to refer to this post as “part2” following my previous one from yesterday.
Regarding mind bending, and comprehending the awesomeness of our existence with relation to our universe.
Yesterday I presented an example of our Suns massive presence.
Check this out ……

Bêtelgeuse….

Less often reported is that Betelgeuse is BIG! – not too surprising given that it is classified as a red supergiant. So how big is it?
* It is so big that its diameter is about 1300 times that of our sun. - (picture illustration 1 and 2 below.)
* It is so big that if placed at our Sun’s location, the outer edge of its photosphere would reach out to Jupiter. - (picture 3 below)
* It is so big that it was the first star to have its angular diameter measured. Stars are so far away that they appear as pinpoints of light whose angular diameter cannot be determined. But Betelgeuse was big enough that 100 years ago, in 1920, it was the prime candidate to submit to measurement of its angular diameter.
😳😳😳😳😳

**pic 1 and 2 courtesy of the RASC, Vancouver Canada.
***pic 3 Image credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)/E. O’Gorman/P. Kervella

Astrofest was a real blast again this year. It actually looked like the largest public attendance in years. Last night offered lots of awesome exhibitions, displays, and fun for everyone. There was alot of great photography talent on display too. Congratulations to all the winners, and commendations.
For me personally, I was very honoured to be presented with awards for two winning entries. A huge thanks to the judges for selecting my Solar Timelapse animation, and best planet photo of Venus as winners.

Looking up at the sky tonight.
It has been considered that these rings around the moon means rain on the way. This phenomenon is created by the moons light passing through ice crystals high up in our atmosphere. The light is bent in a way, similar to looking through a glass of water. If this bending of light is symmetrical then a nice ring is formed.