Category: Daily Posts

A Little Humor for Your Day – Signs you are living in the year 2016

Signs you are living in the year 2016

 

You tried to enter your password on the microwave

You haven’t played solitaire with a real deck of cards in years

You have a list of 15 phone numbers to reach your family of 3

Your daughter sells Girl Scout Cookies via her web site

You chat several times a day with a stranger from South Africa, but you haven’t spoken to your next door neighbor this year

You pull up in your own driveway and use your cell phone to see if anyone is home

Your reason for not staying in touch with family is because they do not have an e-mail address.

You e-mail your son in his room to tell him that dinner is ready he e-mails you back “What’s for dinner?”

You hear most of your jokes via e-mail instead of in person 🙂

You get an extra phone line so you can get phone calls

Using real money, instead of credit or debit ,to make a purchase would be a hassle and take planning

You consider second-day air delivery painfully slow

 

Astronomy Picture of the Day – Five Planets and the Moon

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.

2016 August 16

Five Planets and the Moon over Australia
Image Credit & Copyright: Alex Cherney (Terrastro, TWAN)

 

Explanation: It is not a coincidence that planets line up. That’s because all of the planets orbit the Sun in (nearly) a single sheet called the plane of the ecliptic. When viewed from inside that plane — as Earth dwellers are likely to do — the planets all appear confined to a single band. It is a coincidence, though, when several of the brightest planets all appear in nearly the same direction. Such a coincidence was captured just last week. Featured above, six planets and Earth’s Moon were all imaged together last week, just before sunset, from Mornington Peninsula in Victoria, Australia. A second band is visible across the top of this tall image — the central band of our Milky Way Galaxy.

Earth Sky News for August 16th: Mercury greatest elongation

Mercury greatest elongation August 16

By

Tonight – August 16, 2016 – the innermost planet Mercury swings out to its greatest eastern elongation from the sun. That’s its greatest angular distance from the sun in our sky’s dome. Mercury is now a 27o east of the setting sun, nearly as far from the sun on the sky’s dome as it can be. This little world – sometimes called the most elusive planet – can now be viewed in the west after sunset.

Ironically for us in the Northern Hemisphere, this very extreme elongation of Mercury doesn’t result in ease of viewing in our sky. For us, the planet is still low in the west after sunset. Meanwhile, for the Southern Hemisphere, this is Mercury’s finest appearance in the evening sky for 2016. And we can all see Mercury – from all parts of the world – if we try.

From the northern tropics and the Southern Hemisphere, Mercury should be fairly easy to see with the eye alone starting around 75 minutes after sunset.

From more northerly latitudes, it’ll take more of an effort to catch Mercury after sunset, because Mercury follows the sun beneath the horizon an hour (or less) after the sun. If you live in the northern U.S. or Canada, or at similar latitudes, binoculars might come in handy for your Mercury search.

Two other planets join Mercury in the western sky after sunset: Venus and Jupiter. Although Mercury shines as brightly as the sky’s brightest stars, Mercury’s brightness pales next to that of Venus and Jupiter – the third-brightest and fourth-brightest celestial bodies in all the heavens, respectively, after the sun and moon.

If you live at mid-northern latitudes, look at the chart at the top of this post. Start your search for bright Venus and Jupiter – and fainter Mercury – about 45 minutes after sunset. All these worlds – though respectably bright – must contend with the glare of evening twilight at northerly latitudes.

From the Southern Hemisphere, Venus, Mercury and Jupiter stay up until after dark, and should be rather easy to view around 75 to 90 minutes after sunset. Whereas Mercury sets about an hour after the sun at mid-northern latitudes, temperate latitudes in the Southern Hemisphere find Mercury setting two hours after sunset.

Venus sets first after sunset, followed by Mercury and then Jupiter. To find out when these planets set in your sky, try one of the recommended almanacs on our almanac page.

From the Southern Hemisphere, Mercury should be fairly easy to spot in the west as dusk gives way to nightfall for a few more weeks to come!

By the way, two other planets – Mars and Saturn – are also up after sunset and stay out later into the night. If you do see Mercury, Venus and Jupiter – and then Mars and Saturn – you’ll see all five naked-eye planets.

Mars and Saturn stay out until nearly midnight at mid-northern latitudes, or until the wee hours after midnight at southerly latitudes. They make a prominent triangle on the sky’s dome with a bright star, Antares in the constellation Scorpius. At mid-northern latitudes, look in the south to southwest sky at nightfall; and from the Southern Hemisphere, look high overhead as darkness falls.

Bottom line: Mercury is in the west after sunset – in between the very bright planets Venus and Jupiter. On the night of August 16, 2016, it’s at greatest elongation or farthest from the sun on the sky’s dome for this evening apparition.

 

Bruce McClure

Bruce McClure has served as lead writer for EarthSky’s popular Tonight pages since 2004. He’s a sundial aficionado, whose love for the heavens has taken him to Lake Titicaca in Bolivia and sailing in the North Atlantic, where he earned his celestial navigation certificate through the School of Ocean Sailing and Navigation. He also writes and hosts public astronomy programs and planetarium programs in and around his home in upstate New York.

Article originally published on EarthSky

Your Charm for August 16th is The Fish

Your Charm for Today

Today’s Meaning:
Prosperity is yours for the taking over the next several months. Good spirits are watching over you and will guide you too abundance and prosperity.

General Description:
The Fish is one of the most ancient of all charms, and was probably introduced into Europe from Alexandria. Originally the Fish was the symbol of the Egyptian goddess who controlled the rising of the Nile, which brought prosperity and abundance to Egypt. The Palm branch has been used from earliest times as an emblem of victory. The Crook was the symbol of the Good Shepherd who watches over the welfare of his sheep. The Ring (early Christian) was worn for success, protection, prosperity, riches, and happiness.

Your Ancient Symbol Card for August 16th is The Cat

Your Ancient Symbol Card for Today

The Cat



The Cat represents the need for stealth and the freedom to act without restrictions. Acting stealthily in no way implies the need for underhanded behavior. Instead the suggestion here is to move quietly towards your goals and reach out for them when they are within range. It also denotes a need to free yourself from restrictions imposed by others.

As a daily card, The Cat suggests that the opportunity to attain your goals is very strong at the moment. However, you need to keep your intentions to yourself and shed whatever limitations have been put on you by others.

Your Daily Witches Rune for August 16th is The Crossed Spears

The Daily Witches Rune

The Crossed Spears

Meaning: The presence of the spear signifies arguments, negative events, and all manner of strife of an upsetting nature. However similar to the ‘Tower’ tarot card if next to a positive rune it could mean the end of an argument or quarrel. If with the rings it means the healing or renewal of a relationship. If there are military connections it could mean promotion. If illness is within the equation it means a speedy and successful recovery.

Your Crowley Thoth Tarot Card for August 16th is Fortune

Your Crowley Thoth Tarot Card for Today

Fortune



Fortune represents that aspect of life that is directed by forces and events we may not understand or even be aware of. In short, Fortune deals with chance—those occurrences that manage to alter even the most structured of lives, usurp man’s “best laid plans.” While the effects of Fortune are unpredictable, the outcome is always change; sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. Our path through life is never a ride down a perfectly straight highway. Sometimes we may even experience hairpin turns or complete reversals of direction. Fortune is strong reminder that despite our plans, the Universe has its own agenda from which we cannot escape participation.

Your Daily Influences Using The Minchiate Tarot Deck for August 16th

Your Daily Influences for August 16th

 

Tarot Influence

Queen of Coins

Feminine qualities take the forefront. In tune with the earth. Nurturing. Wealth and security. Talents put to good use.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Astrological Influence

Capricorn

Capricorn denotes a drive to succeed through a pragmatic approach to life.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Element Influence

Earth

Earth is the card of everyday life. Earth makes riches of all kinds available to those who are in tune with her.