Giant Asteroid Vesta Photographed Up Close
August 1st, 2011
OMG We better get Bruce Willis ready for another mission. I have just been looking at some never before seen images of a giant asteroid and they are amazing pictures. Although it is not set to come crashing into earth it is still pretty amazing. Here is some information about it. Follow the links below to see and read some more.
NASA’s Dawn spacecraft photographed the giant asteroid Vesta from orbit on July 24, 2011. I have been following with great interest this NASA mission since it launched back in September 2007. Dawn was captured by Vesta’s weak gravity and went into orbit on July 15th.
Dawn will stay in orbit around Vesta for about a year before moving on to the dwarf planet Ceres, arriving in February 2015. ”Vesta is thought to be the source of a large number of meteorites that fall to Earth. Vesta and its new NASA neighbor, Dawn, are currently approximately 117 million miles (188 million kilometers) away from Earth. The Dawn team will begin gathering science data in August. Observations will provide unprecedented data to help scientists understand the earliest chapter of our solar system.
The data also will help pave the way for future human space missions. The Dawn science team is working to determine the significance of the distinct features in this image, which include large grooves or ridges extending for great distances around Vesta.”
“Vesta is 330 miles (530 kilometers) in diameter and the second most massive object in the asteroid belt. Ground- and space-based telescopes have obtained images of Vesta for about two centuries, but they have not been able to see much detail on its surface.
“We are beginning the study of arguably the oldest extant primordial surface in the solar system,” said Dawn principal investigator Christopher Russell from the University of California, Los Angeles. “This region of space has been ignored for far too long. So far, the images received to date reveal a complex surface that seems to have preserved some of the earliest events in Vesta’s history, as well as logging the onslaught that Vesta has suffered in the intervening eons.”
“Dawn’s initial orbit around Vesta carries it over the asteroid’s poles at an altitude of roughly 1,700 miles. The orbit’s orientation keeps the spacecraft and its huge solar panels in direct sunlight to provide power for its instruments and its propulsion system. Traveling from north to south, Dawn will complete one orbit every three Earth days.
Because Vesta completes one rotation or “day,” every five hours and 20 minutes, Dawn will be able to observe the asteroid’s entire illuminated surface every orbit. During south-to-north passes above Vesta’s night side, Dawn will transmit stored images and other data back to Earth.” Continue reading more and see more photographs: on NASA’s site here. and on CNN here.
Mack Waldron | Tula’s Restaurant and Jazz Club Owner
July 24th, 2011
Mack Waldron is the owner of Tula’s Restaurant and Jazz Club on the east side of Second Avenue, between Blanchard and Bell St. Tula’s presents the best of the local jazz scene 6 nights a week. Mack was a pleasure to photograph a few days ago. He has a constant twinkle in his eyes and was happy to tell the story of how he came to open Tula’s after his stint in the U.S.Navy. From an old piece from Earshot Jazz Magazine: ”It should be immediately noted that the austere rock-of-a-man behind the sprawling, green bar is one Elliot “Mack” Waldron, Tula’s owner and chief bartender. A native Texan, Mack is a veteran jazzman with 26 years experience in Navy bands as a player and bandleader. In the service he was considered a players’ bandleader. Today he’s considered a players’ club owner” Continue reading here.
End of the Space Shuttle Era
July 22nd, 2011
The final launch of the Space Shuttle Atlantis marks the end of an era. I remember the first launch of the Space Shuttle Columbia in 1981. I was still in graduate school at Ohio University. Shortly afterwards I got my first newspaper job at The Tampa Tribune. It was while working there that I began to be assigned to cover Space Shuttle launches. I continued to photograph launches when I moved a couple of years later to the Florida Times-Union in Jacksonville, Florida and then even after moving to New York at Newsday I was sent down for a few launches.
I covered the first launch of the Space Shuttle Challenger STS-7, and was scheduled to photographer it again on the day it blew up. I was pulled at the last minute, but then after watching it blow up from the newsroom my AME sent me to catch the first flight down to Florida to cover the aftermath. My old negatives are filed away and I will have to try and find them.
The picture above was made by my old friend AP photographer Dave Martin, who has probably covered as many launches as any photographer. The Boston Globes blog The Big Picture has this and 40 more pictures about this historic event. Check it out to see the rest of the pictures. I only wish I could have been down there to see the last launch.
Architectural Photography – Portland House
July 12th, 2011
I was commissioned to photograph another beautiful house by architect Jill Lewis. this time it was a house in Portland, OR. Once again it was a house I felt comfortable in right away. Here are some of the pictures of it at different times of day. At the bottom of the post is a slide show of all 13 images.
Here is a slide show of all of the images
Panoramic Group Portrait | Seattle Pro Musica
July 2nd, 2011
The critically acclaimed Seattle Pro Musica are celebrating nearly four decades of excellence this year in the choral arts and asked me to update the portrait I made of them a few years ago. The last time, we assembled in a park on the shores of Lake Washington that was not far from a church they were going to be performing in. This year I photographed them outside the doors of the Saint James Cathedral prior to another performance they were about to have there.
Named “among America’s very best choirs” by American Record Guide, Seattle Pro Musica embarks on its 38th season in 2010-2011 with a trio of magical performances.
Established in 1972 as a small but ambitious chamber choir, today’s distinguished ensemble consists of 70 talented singers with diverse backgrounds and a shared passion for beautiful and precise expressions of classical music. Seattle Pro Musica also has two smaller ensembles, the 24-voice Madrigalia chamber ensemble and the 15-voice women’s Schola. They perform under the direction of award-winning conductor and artistic director, Karen P. Thomas. Read more on their website Seattle Pro Musica
Salmon Bay Graduation Class of 2011
June 21st, 2011
Last night, the 8th grade class of Salmon Bay School had their graduating ceremonies at Ballard High School Auditorium. What an event. Very few parents and teachers in the audience did not need a kleenex. My daughter Ema was one of the students who gave a speech with her friend Amelia.
Here are a few highlights of the evening. There is also a web gallery with a more extensive set of pictures. Click on Salmon Bay 2011 Graduation to view the remaining 480 (or so) images.
And, again – to see a lot more pictures here is a link to view the entire web gallery.
Mother Goose
June 13th, 2011
A Mother Goose feeds her baby chick on a pier on Lake Union Seattle, WA. She had made her nest in a coil of rope at the end of the pier on the north shore of the lake.
I was on an assignment at the waters edge and watched her feeding her chicks before they jumped into the water and paddled off. Another sign of Spring here in the Pacific Northwest.
Bellevue Jazz Festival
June 8th, 2011
Last weekend was the annual 2011 Bellevue Jazz Festival and I was once again asked to photograph the event by the producers. Here are a couple of my favorite images so far in my editing of the pictures. Above is a shot of the amazing bassist Evan Flory-Barnes with his group Threat of Beauty as part of the 2011 Bellevue Jazz Festival last Thursday. Also in the group is Jason Holt on drums and and Jacques Willis on Vibes. Here are a few images from their performance which I throughly enjoyed.
Preeminent violinist Regina Carter put on a fascinatingly beautiful performance last Weds night as she and her band kicked off the opening performance of the 2011 Bellevue Jazz Festival at the Theatre at Meydenbauer Centre. Almost every performance I covered was a joy to hear.
Little Shop Of Horrors Plant
May 25th, 2011
Last week Salmon Bay School put on their annual musical play. The part of the plant. Audrey 2, in the Little Shop of Horrors was played by Claire. This was her second adventure in theatre. Last year she played the part of the dog Toto in Wizzard of Oz. She was directed by Glyde King and her costume was made by Cameron Mason