January 2012 Archives

Moon

January 22, 2012January 17, 2012 by matt goff

This entry is part 10 of 24 in the series 2012 Photojournal

Another clear day and night. As I write this, temperatures have dropped to 8F after reaching a high of only 14F. It seems unlikely we’ll reach a record low for this date (7F in 1971), but perhaps we’ll match or break the record low for tomorrow (8F in 1969) before temperatures warm up for the day. Fortunately winds have been calm around the house, so it hasn’t felt too bad.

The view of Orion from the south side of the house inspired me to brave the cold for a couple of minutes to take some pictures.

Weather Quiz

January 16, 2012 by matt goff

Part 1: During which month of the year is Sitka least likely to have a clear day? During which month of the year is Sitka most likely to have a clear day? What about Clear/Mostly Sunny days? Part 2: During which month of the year is Sitka least likely to have a day without precipitation? … Read more

Clear Skies

January 15, 2012 by matt goff

A couple of days ago when I saw the forecast for the clear and cold weather that is now upon us, I reflected on the fact that we hadn’t yet had a cold snap this winter. It seems like in most years we get some cold weather in November or December (though I think most … Read more

Twitter Weekly Updates for 2012-01-14

January 14, 2012 by matt goff

DEJU moving in treetops again as light beginning to fade a bit after 3. Flock moved off to NE. ANHU stopped by while I watched juncos. # Light is dimming fast with a snow shower moving through as the sun sets. Once again the juncos are moving through the trees toward NE. #

Winter Lincoln’s Sparrow

January 13, 2012 by matt goff

While walking downtown around noon I noticed an odd sparrow in a yard along Etolin Street. A closer look revealed it to be a Lincoln’s Sparrow. Earlier this winter I went to take a look at a Lincoln’s Sparrow hanging around feeders out by SeaMart. At this point I am not aware of any other prior records of this species over wintering in Sitka (though there could be one in Marge and Tedin’s records from the 2000s). So it’s interesting that there may be two in town this winter.