April 4, 2025 Milky Way Snowscape

Woke up to clearing skies and setting Moon. The stars were phenomenal as I watched the core of the Milky Way rise over the mountains. I caught my favorite - M22 over the peak of Mt. Lamborn - in the binoculars, then went out for some photography around 3:30 am. A fresh layer of snow coated the landscape. To the south resided a wonderful neon green expanse of airglow. It made for colorful and contrasty photos.

There was some geomagnetic activity earlier in the night. I noticed some faint photographic pink to the north, but no structure, just a faint glow.

While out there walking around, I suddenly saw a super bright flash towards the northwest. After the flash, it looked like an explosion of debris with a few pieces illuminated. I didn’t see a tail on the approach to the explosion. I also did not hear anything like a bang, though the orchard fans were running in the valley below making a fairly loud hum. Was it a meteor, or a satellite falling from orbiting? Who knows.

I often think of the orchardists out there lighting the fires and running the fans to protect the tender budding fruit trees - friends in the night. In the morning, with fresh sun upon my face, the cherry blossoms wait patiently for the snow to melt and for the warmth spring to resume.

Onward towards the warmer nights of spring and summer!