July 3 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.

2022 July 3

Phobos: Doomed Moon of Mars

Image Credit: HiRISEMROLPL (U. Arizona)NASA

Explanation: This moon is doomed. Mars, the red planet named for the Roman god of war, has two tiny moons, Phobos and Deimos, whose names are derived from the Greek for Fear and Panic. These martian moons may well be captured asteroids originating in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter or perhaps from even more distant reaches of our Solar System. The larger moon, Phobos, is indeed seen to be a cratered, asteroid-like object in this stunning color image from the robotic Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, with objects as small as 10 meters visible. But Phobos orbits so close to Mars – about 5,800 kilometers above the surface compared to 400,000 kilometers for our Moon – that gravitational tidal forces are dragging it down. In perhaps 50 million years, Phobos is expected to disintegrate into a ring of debris.

July 3 Today in History

Today’s Important Historical Events

324 Battle of Adrianople: Roman Emperor Constantine I defeats his co-emperor Licinius, who flees to Byzantium

1187 Battle of Horns of Hattin: Saladin, Sultan of Egypt and Syria, destroys Jerusalem’s crusader army

1863 Battle of Gettysburg, largest battle ever fought on the American continent, ends in a major victory for the Union during the US Civil War

1884 Dow Jones publishes its 1st stock index, the Dow Jones Transportation Average

1996 UK House of Commons announces that the Stone of Scone, aka the Stone of Destiny, used in the coronation of Scottish (and subsequently English and British monarchs), will be returned to Scotland after 700 years in Westminster Abbey

Today’s Historical Events

324 Battle of Adrianople: Roman Emperor Constantine I defeats his co-emperor Licinius, who flees to Byzantium

987 Hugh Capet (Hugh the Great) crowned King of the Franks

987 Hugh Capet, elected by the nobility and crowned as King of France

1090 Battle at Hagenoorde: German emperor beats earl Egbert II

1187 Battle of Horns of Hattin: Saladin, Sultan of Egypt and Syria, destroys Jerusalem’s crusader army

1250 Louis IX of France is captured by Baibars’ Mamluk army at the Battle of Fariskur while he is in Egypt conducting the Seventh Crusade; he later has to ransom himself

1428 Treaty of Delft between Jacoba of Bavaria & Philip the Good of Burgundy

1608 Samuel de Champlain founds city of Quebec

Today’s Historical Events in Film and TV

1928 John Logie Baird demonstrates the first colour television transmission in London

1937 Del Mar Turf Club, with crooner Bing Crosby as president and actor Pat O’Brien as a club officer, opens for racing

1944 “Double Indemnity” film noir directed by Billy Wilder and starring Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck is released in Baltimore, Maryland

1958 “Andy Williams Show” premieres on ABC (later on CBS & NBC)

1985 CBS announces a 21% stock buy-back to thwart Ted Turner‘s takeover

1985 Tinker Bell’s first nightly flight at Walt Disney World Resort, Florida

1985 “Back to the Future” directed by Robert Zemeckis and starring Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd is released

1989 Movie “Batman” set record of quickest $100 million (10 days)

Today’s Historical Events in Music

1954 Leonard Bernstein, Betty Comden and Adolph Green’s musical “Wonderful Town”, starring Rosalind Russell, closes at Winter Garden Theater, NYC, after 559 performances, and 5 Tony Award wins

1969 Newport Jazz Festival, Newport, Rhode Island opens, 78, 000 attend over 4 days; performers include: George Benson; Blood, Swet, and Tears; Jeff Beck; James Brown; Bill Evans; Sun Ra; Mothers of Invention; Dave Brubeck; Miles Davis; Stephane Grapelli; and Sly & The Family Stone

1970 Atlanta International Pop Festival opens, 200,000 attend over 3 days; performers include Allman Brothers; Grand Funk Railroad, Jimi Hendrix Experience; Richie Havens; Cat Mother & the All-Night Newsboys; B.B. King; Mott the Hoople; and John Sebastian

1976 Brian Wilson performs with the Beach Boys after his 12 year stage absence, at Anaheim Stadium in California

1982 Riot at building site of Stopera concert hall in Amsterdam causes Ÿ1 million in damages

2006 British singer-songwriter Lily Allen releases her debut single “Smile”

2007 “Just Got Started Lovin’ You” single released by James Otto (Billboard Song of the Year 2008)

2018 Cardi B becomes first female rapper to get two number one US Billboard hits, with “I Like It” with Bad Bunny and J Balvin

Today’s Historical Events in Sports

1900 Wimbledon Women’s Tennis: Blanche Bingley-Hillyard beats rival and fellow Briton Charlotte Cooper 4-6, 6-4, 6-4

1900 Wimbledon Men’s Tennis: R.F. Doherty beats Sydney Smith 6-8, 6-3, 6-1, 6-2 for his 4th consecutive Wimbledon singles title

1901 Wimbledon Women’s Tennis: Charlotte Cooper Sterry beats Blanche Bingley-Hillyard 6-2 6-2, her 4th of 5 Wimbledon singles titles

1905 American boxer Marvin Hart scores a 12th round KO of Jack Root in Reno, Nevada for the vacant world heavyweight title

1909 Wimbledon Men’s Tennis: Arthur Gore beats Josiah Ritchie 6-8, 1-6, 6-2, 6-2, 6-2 for back-to-back titles

1912 NY Giants pitcher Rube Marquard ties Tim Keefe‘s 1888 MLB record 19 game win-streak with 2-1 win v Brooklyn Dodgers; has 21 with 2 end-of-season in 1911

1913 Wimbledon Men’s Tennis: New Zealander Anthony Wilding wins 4th straight Wimbledon title beating American Maurice McLoughlin 8-6, 6-3, 10-8

July 2 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.

2022 July 2

Solargraphic Analemmas

Image Credit & CopyrightDawid Rycabel (Pinholove)

Explanation: For the northern hemisphere June 21 was the summer solstice, the Sun reaching its northernmost declination for the year. That would put it at the top of each of these three figure-8 curves, or analemmas, as it passed through the daytime sky over the village of Proboszczow, Poland. No sequence of digital exposures was used to construct the remarkable image though. Using a pinhole camera fixed to face south during the period June 26, 2021 to June 26, 2022, the image was formed directly on a single sheet of photographic paper, a technique known as solargraphy. The three analemmas are the result of briefly exposing the photo paper through the pinhole each day at 11:00, 12:00, and 13:00 CET. Groups of dashed lines on the sides show partial tracks of the Sun from daily exposures made every 15 minutes. Over the year-long solargraphic photo opportunity clouds blocking the Sun during the pinhole exposures created the dark gaps.

Some of the Witchcraft/Magickal Correspondence Digest for Saturday

From WitchSwap.com

Saturday

is associated with Saturn (imagine that!), the planet that rules over responsibility, self-discipline, limitations and boundaries. Zodiac signs include Aquarius as well as Capricorn and Libra (due to the planetary correlation to Saturn). Elements corresponding to Saturday are Earth and Water. Saturn is the Roman God who is known for liberation and dissolution. Because of this, spells having to do with break ups (yeah, controversial and this isn’t’ an endorsement, either, just to be clear), ending a relationship or a partnership of any kind, business, personal, etc. as well as banishment, justice, swift karma and protection spells will all be favorable if performed on a Saturday. Gods/Goddesses: Saturn. Colors: Black and purple. **a black candle is great to use to banish negativity or to reverse a situation, it is not only used in baneful spells**. Angel: Barachiel

Pagan and Magickal Terms and Definitions

Today’s Word is

Warding

From moonlitpriestess.com

Creating barriers and protective measures on a magickal or spiritual level. Methods differ between traditions and magickal practitioners.

July 2 Today in History

Today’s Important Historical Events

626 Incident at Xuanwu Gate: in fear of assassination, Li Shimin ambushes and kills his rival brothers Li Yuanji and Li Jiancheng

1776 Continental Congress resolves “these United Colonies are and of right ought to be Free and Independent States”

1823 Bahia Independence Day: the end of Portuguese rule in Brazil, with the final defeat of the Portuguese crown loyalists in the province of Bahia

1964 US President Lyndon B. Johnson signs Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act into law

1990 1,426 pilgrims trampled to death after a panic in a tunnel in Mecca, Saudi Arabia

Today’s Historical Events

311 St Miltiades begins his reign as Catholic Pope

626 Incident at Xuanwu Gate: in fear of assassination, Li Shimin ambushes and kills his rival brothers Li Yuanji and Li Jiancheng

706 Remains of Chinese Emperor Gaozong, his wife Empress Wu Zetian and family members interred in Qianling Mausoleum by Emperor Zhongzong, outside Chang’an on Mount Liangshan

963 The imperial army proclaims Nicephorus Phocas to be Emperor of the Romans on the plains outside Cappadocian Caesarea

1140 Hartbert becomes bishop of Utrecht

1214 Battle of La Roche-aux-Moines (Angers), part of King John of England’s attempt to reclaim Normandy from France

1266 Treaty of Perth: Norway recognises Scottish sovereignty over the Hebrides and the Isle of Man

1298 Battle on Hasenbuhl (Gollheim) between German kings Adolf and Albrecht I

Today’s Historical Events in Film and TV

1928 The Jenkins Television Corporation (owned by Charles Jenkins) goes on air with W3XK, the first television broadcasting station in the USA

1941 Noël Coward‘s “Blithe Spirit” premieres in London

1949 “Red Barber’s Clubhouse” sports show premieres on CBS (later NBC) TV

1951 “Bob & Ray show” premieres on NBC radio

1955 “Lawrence Welk Show” premieres on ABC

1958 Musical drama Film “King Creole” starring Elvis Presley based on a novel by Harold Robbins premieres

1972 American pole vaulter Bob Seagren breaks world record for the 4th and final time with 5.63m in Eugene, Oregon

1980 Comedy film “Airplane!” written and directed by David Zucker, Jim Abrahams, and Jerry Zucker and starring Robert Hays and Julie Hagerty premieres

Today’s Historical Events in Music

1900 Jean Sibelius‘ “Finlandia” premieres in Helsinki

1949 “High Button Shoes” closes at Century Theater NYC after 727 performances

1955 “7th Heaven” closes at ANTA Theater NYC after 44 performances

1955 “Almost Crazy” closes at Longacre Theater NYC after 16 performances

1956 Elvis Presley records “Hound Dog” and “Don’t Be Cruel”

1960 “Once Upon a Mattress” closes at Alvin Theater NYC after 460 performances

1964 Cilla Black records Lennon/McCartney song “It’s For You”, Paul McCartney plays piano

1969 American guitarist Leslie West and producer, bassist Felix Pappalardi form rock group Mountain

Today’s Historical Events in Sports

1902 Wimbledon Women’s Tennis: Muriel Robb wins her only major title with a 7-5, 6-1 defeat of fellow Briton Charlotte Cooper

1903 National League MLB batting champion Ed Delahanty, disappears after being removed intoxicated from a train by force; found dead at bottom of Niagara Falls 2 weeks later

1903 Pitcher Jack Doscher, debuts for the Chicago Cubs, the first son of a major leaguer to play MLB, father Herm 1882-92

1906 Yanks win by forfeit for the 1st time

1907 US National Championship Women’s Tennis, Philadelphia CC: Evelyn Sears beats fellow American Carrie Neely 6-3, 6-2 for her lone major singles title

1909 Wimbledon Women’s Tennis: Dora Boothby earns her only Wimbledon title with a 6-4, 4-6, 8-6 win over Agnes Morton

1911 Detroit Tigers legend Ty Cobb hits in his 40th straight game in 14-6 rout of Cleveland. Streak ends next game

1921 Wimbledon Men’s Tennis: Bill Tilden beats South African Brian Norton 4-6, 2-6, 6-1, 6-0, 7-5 for the third of 10 Grand Slam singles titles

Pagan and Magickal Terms and Definitions

Today’s Word is

Ankh

From moonlitpriestess.com

An ancient Egyptian symbol resembling a cross with a loop at the top. It symbolizes life and cosmic knowledge. Most Egyptian Gods and Goddess are shown carrying one. Also known as the crux ansata, the Ankh is used in modern craft for fertility and health.

July 1 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.

2022 July 1

The Solar System’s Planet Trails

Image Credit & CopyrightZheng Zhi

Explanation: Stars trail through a clear morning sky in this postcard from a rotating planet. The timelapse image is constructed from consecutive exposures made over nearly three hours with a camera fixed to a tripod beside the Forbidden City in Beijing, China on June 24. Arcing above the eastern horizon after the series of exposures began, a waning crescent Moon left the brightest streak and watery reflection. On that date the planets of the Solar System were also lined up along the ecliptic and left their own trails before sunrise. Saturn was first to rise on that morning and the ringed planet’s trail starts close to the top right edge, almost out of the frame. Innermost planet Mercury rose only just before the Sun though. It left the shortest trail, visible against the twilight near the horizon at the far left. Uranus and Neptune are faint and hard to find, but mingled with the star trails the Solar System’s planet trails are all labeled in the scene.

July 1 Today in History

Today’s Important Historical Events

1689 Matsuo Basho, zen poet, leaves for 150 days journey on Honshu, Japan

1858 The joint reading of Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace‘s papers on evolution to the Linnean Society

1863 Battle of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania; Lee’s northward advance halted

1867 The Dominion of Canada is formed, comprising the provinces of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario & Quebec, with John A. Macdonald serving as the first Prime Minister

1916 First day of the Battle of the Somme: the British Army suffers its worst day, losing 19,240 men (WWI)

1921 The Communist Party of China is founded and Chen Duxiu elected its leader

1941 Bulova Watch Co pays $9 for 1st ever network TV commercial

1997 United Kingdom returns Hong Kong and the New Territories to the People’s Republic of China

Today’s Historical Events

69 Batavian nobleman Gaius Julius Civilis proclaimed emperor of Syria

69 Roman General Vespasian is first proclaimed Emperor by troops in Egypt, during year of the four emperors

70 Roman General Titus and his forces set up battering rams to assault the walls of Jerusalem

251 The Battle of Abrittus in the Balkans won by the Goths against the Romans. Roman Emperors Decius and Herennius Etruscus are killed

649 Pope Martinus I elected to succeed Theodore I

1097 1st Crusaders defeat Sultan Kilidj Arslan of Nicea

1200 In China, sunglasses are invented

1233 Earl Otto II van Gelre grants Arnhem state justice

Today’s Historical Events in Film and TV

1941 WCBW (now WCBS) TV channel 2 in NY, NY (CBS) begins broadcasting

1941 WNBT TV (W2XBS, Now WNBC) channel 4 in NYC (NBC) begins broadcasting

1949 WBRC TV channel 6 in Birmingham, AL (ABC) begins broadcasting

1949 WCCO TV channel 4 in Minneapolis-St Paul, MN (CBS) begins broadcasting

1950 WHBF TV channel 4 in Rock Island, IL (CBS) begins broadcasting

1952 English architect Michael Ventris says he has solved one of the 20th century’s greatest linguistic riddles, by deciphering Linear B in BBC interview. Is an ancient form of Greek on clay tablets from Minoan palace of Knossos. [1]

1953 KLAS TV channel 8 in Las Vegas, NV (CBS) begins broadcasting

Today’s Historical Events in Music

1933 Strauss & von Hofmannsthal’s opera “Arabella,” premieres at the Semperoper Opera House in Dresden, Germany

1950 Maxwell Anderson and Kurt Weill’s “Lost in the Stars”, based on Alan Paton‘s novel “Cry the Beloved Country”, closes at Music Box Theater, NYC, after 281 performances

1960 Benjamin Britten‘s cantate “Carmen Baseliense” premieres in Basel

1963 The Beatles record “She Loves You” and “I’ll Get You”

1967 “Funny Girl” closes at Winter Garden Theater, NYC, after 1348 performances

1967 The Beatles’ album “Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” goes #1 in the United States, where it would stay for 15 weeks

1968 John Lennon‘s 1st full art exhibition (You Are Here) opens at Robert Fraser Gallery in London

1969 John Lennon and Yoko Ono are admitted to hospital after he crashes his car near Durness in the Scottish Highlands

Today’s Historical Events in Sports

1859 1st intercollegiate baseball game, Amherst beats Williams 66-32 in Pittsfield, Massachusetts

1893 San Francisco Bay City Club opens 1st US bicycle race track, made of wood

1901 Wimbledon Men’s Tennis: Arthur Gore beats defending 4-time champion R.F. Doherty 4-6, 7-5, 6-4, 6-4 for his 1st of 3 Wimbledon singles titles

1903 Tour de France: Inaugural race begins in Montgeron, a south-eastern suburb of Paris

1904 III Summer (Modern) Olympic Games open in St Louis, the first held in the United States

1904 Willie Anderson becomes the first 2-time Western Open golf champion, beating fellow Scot Alex Smith by 4 strokes at Michigan’s Kent CC

1910 Chicago’s White Sox Park (later Comiskey Park) opens – St Louis Browns beat White Sox, 2-0

1916 Pittsburgh shortstop Honus Wagner, at 42 and 4 months, connects at Cincinnati to become the oldest to hit an inside-the-park HR; Pirates beat Reds, 2-1

Some of the Witchcraft/Magickal Correspondence Digest Thursday

Magickal Intentions: Luck, Happiness, Health, Legal Matters, Male Fertility, Treasure and Wealth, Honor, Riches, Clothing Desires, Leadership, Public Activity, Power and Success

Incense: Cinnamon, Must, Nutmeg and Sage

Planet: Jupiter

Sign: Sagittarius and Pisces

Angel: Sachiel

Colors: Purple, Royal Blue and Indigo

Herbs/Plants: Cinnamon, Beech, Buttercup, Coltsfoot, Oak

Stones: Sugilite, Amethyst, Turquoise, Lapis Lazuli and Sapphire

Oil: (Jupiter) Clove, Lemon Balm, Oakmoss, Star Anise

Jupiter presides over Thursday. The vibrations of this day attune well to all matters involving material gain. Use them for working rituals that entail general success, accomplishment, honors and awards, or legal issues. These energies are also helpful in matters of luck, gambling, and prosperity.

 

Pagan and Magickal Terms and Definitions

Today’s Word is

Angels

From moonlitpriestess.com

Divine beings known throughout many religions and cultures spanning to as far back as known recorded history. Generally known for their roles as messengers, protectors, and spiritual guides.

June 30 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.

2022 June 30

Comet C/2017 K2 (PanSTARRS)

Image Credit & CopyrightJose J. Chambo (Cometografia)

Explanation: Imaged on June 20 2022, comet C/2017 K2 (PanSTARRS) shares this wide telescopic field of view with open star cluster IC 4665 and bright star Beta Ophiuchi, near a starry edge of the Milky Way. On its maiden voyage to the inner Solar System from the dim and distant Oort cloud, this comet PanSTARRS was initially spotted over five years ago, in May 2017. Then it was the most distant active inbound comet ever found, discovered when it was some 2.4 billion kilometers from the Sun. That put it between the orbital distances of Uranus and Saturn. Hubble Space Telescope observations indicated the comet had a large nucleus less than 18 kilometers in diameter. Now visible in small telescopes C/2017 K2 will make its closest approach to planet Earth on July 14 and closest approach to the Sun this December. Its extended coma and developing tail are seen here at a distance of some 290 million kilometers, a mere 16 light-minutes away.

June 30 Today in History

Today’s Important Historical Events

1520 Spanish conquistadors are expelled from Tenochtitlan following an Aztec revolt against their rule under Hernán Cortés during “La Noche Triste” (the Night of Sadness). Many soldiers drown in the escape, and Aztec emperor Moctezuma II dies in the struggle

1860 Famous debate on Charles Darwin‘s theory of evolution held at the Oxford University Museum and dominated by arguments between Thomas Henry Huxley and Bishop Samuel Wilberforce

1905 In Russia, the “Potemkin” arrives at Odessa, where sailors take the bodies of dead crewman ashore; sailors join civilians in revolutionary actions of the ‘1905 Revolution’

1908 A giant fireball, most likely caused by the air burst of a large meteoroid or comet flattens 80 million trees near the Stony Tunguska River in Yeniseysk Governorate, Russia, in the largest impact event in recorded history

1934 “Night of Long Knives” – Adolf Hitler stages a bloody purge of the Nazi party

1938 Superman 1st appears in DC Comics’ Action Comics Series issue #1

1992 South African ANC President Nelson Mandela meets with UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali at Dakar

1997 British lease on the New Territories in Hong Kong, established by the Second Convention of Peking, expires

Today’s Historical Events

296 St Marcellinus begins his reign as Catholic Pope

350 Roman usurper Nepotianus, of the Constantinian dynasty, is defeated and killed by troops of the usurper Magnentius, in Rome

833 Louis crowned King of Austria

949 Otto I the Great gives away bishopric of Utrecht “foreestrecht”

1294 Jews are expelled from Berne, Switzerland

1371 Arnold II of Horne chosen bishop of Utrecht

1377 Foundation stone laid for Ulm Minster, in Ulm, Germany. Will not be completed until 1890, when it becomes the tallest church in the world.

1397 Denmark, Norway and Sweden sign Union of Kalmar under Queen Margaretha

Today’s Historical Events in Film and TV

1925 Charles Jenkins is granted the U.S. patent for Transmitting Pictures over Wireless (early television)

1940 “Brenda Starr, Reporter”, 1st cartoon strip by a woman, Dale [Dalia] Messick, begins as a comic-book supplement to Chicago’s Sunday Tribune

1951 “Victor Borge Show” last airs on NBC-TV

1952 “Guiding Light” soap opera moves from radio to TV

1955 “Johnny Carson Show” debuts on CBS-TV

1973 “Burns & Schreiber Comedy Hour” TV Variety; debut on ABC

1979 johnny rotten and Joan Collins appear together on BBC TV’s “Juke Box Jury”

1982 “Lena Horne: Lady, Music” closes at Nederlander NYC after 333 performances

Today’s Historical Events in Music

1956 “Pipe Dream” closes at Shubert Theater NYC after 245 performances

1956 “Shangri-La” closes at Winter Garden Theater NYC after 21 performances

1958 “No Chemise, Please” by Gerry Grenahan peaks at #24

1966 The Beatles land in Tokyo for a concert tour

1977 Marvel Comics publish “Kiss book” tributing rock group Kiss

1979 “Got To Go Disco” closes at Minskoff Theater NYC after 8 performances

1979 “Good Times” single released by Chic (Billboard Song of the Year 1979)

1985 Revival of the Rodgers and Hammerstein’s musical “The King & I” closes at Broadway Theater, NYC, after 191 performances

Today’s Historical Events in Sports

1897 Wimbledon Men’s Tennis: R.F. Doherty beats Harold Mahony 6-4 6-4 6-3 for the first of 4 titles

1899 Spin bowler Jack Hearne takes England cricket’s first Test hat-trick vs Australia in drawn 3rd Test at Headingley; dismisses champion middle order trio Clem Hill, Syd Gregory and Monty Noble

1902 Wimbledon Men’s Tennis: Laurence Doherty wins his first Wimbledon singles title beating defending champion Arthur Gore 6-4, 6-3, 3-6, 6-0

1903 Wimbledon Women’s Tennis: Dorothea Chambers beats Ethel Larcombe 4-6, 6-4, 6-2, the first of 7 titles

1903 Wimbledon Men’s Tennis: Laurence Doherty beats Frank Riseley 7-5, 6-3, 6-0 for his second consecutive title

1908 At 41 years, 3 months future Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Cy Young becomes oldest player to record a third career no-hitter as Boston Red Sox beat NY Highlanders, 8-0

1908 Wimbledon Women’s Tennis: Charlotte Cooper Sterry wins her 5th and final Wimbledon title with a 6-4, 6-4 win over Agnes Morton

1908 Wimbledon Men’s Tennis: Arthur Gore takes his 2nd of 3 Wimbledon titles beating Herbert Roper-Barrett 6-3, 6-2, 4-6, 3-6, 6-4

Pagan and Magickal Terms and Definitions

Today’s Word is

Godspouse

From moonlitpriestess.com

Term generally found in Heathen communities; individuals possessing strong, deep, and intimate relationship with the deities they work with. Unlike similar concepts, such as Christian nuns, godspouses aren’t necessarily romantically or sexually celibate. The subject of godspouses is controversial and sometimes rejected even in the Heathen communities in which the practice is found.

June 29 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.

2022 June 29

Solar System Family Portrait

Image Credit & Copyright: Alexis Trigo

Explanation: Yes, but have you ever seen all of the planets at once? A rare roll-call of planets has been occurring in the morning sky for much of June. The featured fisheye all-sky image, taken a few mornings ago near the town of San Pedro de Atacama in Chile, caught not only the entire planet parade, but the Moon between Mars and Venus. In order, left to right along the ecliptic plane, members of this Solar System family portrait are EarthSaturnNeptuneJupiterMarsUranusVenusMercury, and Earth. To emphasize their locations, Neptune and Uranus have been artificially enhanced. The volcano just below Mercury is Licancabur. In July, Mercury will move into the Sun’s glare but reappear a few days later on the evening side. Then, in August, Saturn will drift past the direction opposite the Sun and so become visible at dusk instead of dawn. The next time that all eight planets will be simultaneously visible in a morning sky will be in 2122.

 

Notable Submissions to APOD: Morning Planet Parade 2022 June

June 29 Today in History

Today’s Important Historical Events

1613 Shakespeare‘s Globe Theatre in London, burns down during a performance of “Henry VIII”

1900 The Imperial Chinese Court issues what is essentially a declaration of war against foreigners in China blaming them for hostilities and giving license to the Boxers for even greater ferocity

1964 Civil Rights Act of 1964 passes after an 83-day filibuster in the US Senate

1966 Vietnam War: US planes bomb the North Vietnamese capital Hanoi and the port city of Haiphong for the first time

1994 US reopens Guantanamo Naval Base to process refugees

Today’s Historical Events

512 A solar eclipse is recorded by a monastic chronicler in Ireland

922 Kingdom of the West Franks crowns Robert I as King of West Francia, after deposing Charles the Simple (Charles III)

1072 Former Byzantine Emperor Romanos IV Diogenes blinded by rivals and exiled

1149 Raymond of Antioch is defeated and killed at the Battle of Inab by Nur ad-Din.

1194 Sverre is crowned King of Norway

1312 Holy Roman Emperor Henry VII crowned

1377 French raid at Rye, England

1428 Jacoba of Bavaria signs cease fire with Philip the Good

Today’s Historical Events in Film and TV

1936 George M. Cohan is the first artist to be presented with a US Congressional Gold Medal, by Franklin D. Roosevelt (for raising war morale)

1940 Batman Comics, mobsters rubbed out a circus highwire team known as the Flying Graysons, leaving their son Dick (Robin) an orphan

1953 XETV TV channel 6 in Tijuana-San Diego, CA (IND) begins broadcasting

1964 1st draft of Star Trek’s pilot “Cage” released

1966 KBSC (now KVEA) TV channel 52 in Corona-Los Angeles, CA begins

1988 Emmy 15th Daytime Award presentation – Susan Lucci loses for 9th time

1989 Emmy 16th Daytime Award presentation – Susan Lucci loses for 10th time

1990 Marla Maples father sues National Enquirer for $12M

Today’s Historical Events in Music

1888 First (known) recording of classical music made, Handel’s “Israel in Egypt” on wax cylinder

1946 “Are You with It?” closes at Century Theater NYC after 264 performances

1946 “Billion Dollar Baby” closes at Alvin Theater NYC after 219 performances

1963 “Little Me” closes at Lunt-Fontanne Theater NYC after 257 performances

1963 Beatles’ 1st song “From Me to You” hits UK charts

1967 Keith Richards is sentenced to 1 year in jail on drugs charge

1968 “Tip-Toe Thru’ The Tulips With Me” by Tiny Tim peaks at #17

1971 Rolling Stones Mick Jagger & Keith Richards sentenced on drug offense

Today’s Historical Events in Sports

1895 US National Championship Women’s Tennis: Juliette Atkinson beats defending champion Helen Hellwig 6-4, 6-2, 6-1

1897 Chicago Colts establish MLB record for most runs scored in a game by one team as they maul Louisville Colonels, 36 – 7 at the West Side Grounds, Chicago

1901 US National Championship Women’s Tennis, Philadelphia CC: Elisabeth Moore beats defending champion Myrtle McAteer 6-4, 3-6, 7-5, 2-6, 6-2 for her second of 4 US singles titles

1903 US Open Men’s Golf, Baltusrol GC: Willie Anderson of Scotland first to win the Open twice; beats countryman David Brown by 2 strokes in an 18-hole playoff

1906 US Open Men’s Golf, Onwentsia GC: Scotsman Alex Smith wins first of his 2 Open titles, 7 strokes ahead of runner-up and younger brother Willie Smith

1910 Wimbledon Women’s Tennis: In an all-British final, Dorothea Chambers beats Dora Boothby 6-2, 6-2 for her 4th of 7 Wimbledon singles titles

1933 Italian boxer Primo Carnera KOs American defending champion Jack Sharkey in round 6 at Madison Square Garden, NYC to become third European to win the lineal world heavyweight title

1934 British Open Men’s Golf, Royal St. George’s GC: Henry Cotton of England wins wire-to-wire by 5 shots from South African Sid Brews

Pagan and Magickal Terms and Definitions

Today’s Word is

Covenstead

From moonlitpriestess.com

An area of power or energy where a coven meets.

From Spells8.com

A meeting space for witches to gather as a Coven.

June 28 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.

2022 June 28

Mercury from Passing BepiColombo

Image Credit & LicenseESAJAXABepiColomboMTM

Explanation: Which part of the Moon is this? No part — because this is the planet Mercury. Mercury’s old surface is heavily cratered like that of Earth’s Moon. Mercury, while only slightly larger than Luna, is much denser and more massive than any Solar System moon because it is made mostly of iron. In fact, our Earth is the only planet more dense. Because Mercury rotates exactly three times for every two orbits around the Sun, and because Mercury’s orbit is so elliptical, visitors on Mercury could see the Sun rise, stop in the sky, go back toward the rising horizon, stop again, and then set quickly over the other horizon. From Earth, Mercury’s proximity to the Sun causes it to be visible only for a short time just after sunset or just before sunrise. The featured image was captured last week by ESA and JAXA‘s passing BepiColombo spacecraft as it sheds energy and prepares to orbit the innermost planet starting in 2025.

June 28 Today in History

Today’s Important Historical Events

1389 Ottomans defeat Serbian army in the bloody Battle of Kosovo, opening the way for the Ottoman conquest of Southeastern Europe

1519 King Carlos I elected Holy Roman Catholic Emperor Charles V

1838 Coronation of Queen Victoria in Westminster Abbey, London

1919 Treaty of Versailles, ending WWI and establishing the League of Nations, is signed in France

2021 Tigray Defense Forces retake Tigray’s regional capital of Mekelle in Ethiopia’s Tigray War. The Ethiopian government declares a unilateral ceasefire to save face but neither side sticks to it. [1]

Today’s Historical Events

683 Leo II ends his reign as Catholic Pope

767 St Paul I ends his reign as Catholic Pope

1098 Fighters of the First Crusade defeat Kerbogha of Mosul

1119 Battle of Sarmada – Emir Ilghazi defeats French Crusaders

1245 1st Council of Lyon (13th ecumenical council) opens

1389 Ottomans defeat Serbian army in the bloody Battle of Kosovo, opening the way for the Ottoman conquest of Southeastern Europe

1461 Edward IV crowned king of England

1485 Gent/Brugge/Ieper recognize Maximilian of Austria as regent of Netherlands

Today’s Historical Events in Film and TV

1951 “Amos ‘n’ Andy” premieres on CBS TV

1984 17th San Diego Comic-Con International opens at Hotel San Diego

1990 Emmy 17th Daytime Award presentation – Susan Lucci loses for 11th time

1992 Ra Lewis’ dramatic play “Chinese Coffee”, starring Al Pacino, opens at the Circle in Square Theater, NYC; runs for 18 performances

1993 NCRV shows last “Cheers” in Netherlands

1996 “Nutty Professor” starring Eddie Murphy opens in theaters in the USA

2003 “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl”, directed by Gore Verbinski, starring Johnny Depp, Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom, premieres at Disneyland

2017 “Spider-man: Homecoming” directed by Jon Watts starring Tom Holland, Michael Keaton and Robert Downey Jr. premieres in Los Angeles

Today’s Historical Events in Music

1846 Saxophone is patented by Antoine-Joseph “Adolfe” Sax

1928 Louis Armstrong makes 78 recording of “West End Blues”

1947 “Temptation” (Tim-Tayshun) by Red Ingle with Jo Stafford hits #1

1950 “Michael Todd’s Peep Show” opens at Winter Garden NYC for 278 performances

1967 George Harrison is fined £6 for speeding

1973 Black Sports Hall of Fame forms: Paul Robeson, Elgin Baylor, Jesse Owens, Jim Brown, Wilma Rudolph, Joe Louis and Althea Gibson elected

Today’s Historical Events in Sports

1887 Phillies most lopsided shut-out beating Indianapolis 24-0

1892 Phillies tie club record of 16 straight victories

1897 Wimbledon Women’s Tennis: England’s Blanche Bingley-Hillyard wins her 4th title beating Charlotte Cooper 5-7, 7-5, 6-2

1904 Wimbledon Women’s Tennis: Reigning champion Dorothea Chambers beats Charlotte Cooper 6-0, 6-3

1907 Nationals steal a record 13 bases off catcher Branch Rickey

1919 Boston Red Sox Carl Mays pitches a complete doubleheader against NY Yankees, winning 1st game, 2-0, losing 2nd game, 4-1 (Polo Grounds, NYC)

1923 Dodgers lost 7-0 lead, as Phillies score 8 in bottom of 9th

1924 Test cricket umpire debut for Frank Chester, v South Africa at Lord’s

Spell for Today – Herbal Witches Cleansing Bottle

 

To make an herbal cleansing bottle, pour a layer of sand in a large clear bottle.

Add layers of dried herbs, one at a time: first rosemary; then lemon peel, sage, cedar, black peppercorns, lavender, dill, bay leaf, and rowan.

When the bottle is full, focus cleansing protective energy into the herbs and sand, and see a golden light radiating from the bottle. Visualize the herbs driving away negative influences.

Cork and seal the bottle with white wax (or another color of your choice).

Using a permanent marker, draw the Algiz rune on one side of the bottle, and on the other side draw a pentagram.

Set the bottle near your front or back door, and every six months, uncap, pour the herbs out into the woods or your compost heap, and thoroughly wash and dry the bottle before filling it with a new round of herbs.

From Everything Under The Moon