Sun Dogs and Perseids

A close-up of a sun dog in the western sky over Indigo Hill.

Late August is such a delicious time to live in the country, at least here in SE Ohio. The insect sounds are at their peak. It's actually the best birding of the year with fall migration ramping up and all the newly fledged offspring. And near dusk, the common nighthawks are bulbatting their way across our sky, heading generally southward.

The afternoons are still hot, but the cool mornings and evenings are occurring with increasing frequency and each one is a blessing. We take the time to sit out morning and evening, to see what we can see.

And it's the season of sun dogs and Perseids.

Sun dogs are the little mini rainbows that are seen on the left and right of the sun, usually late in the day. We've had a run of sun dogs this week.

The Perseids are the annual autumnal meteor shower. We sat out on Wednesday night with our friend Margaret who came to dine with us, and watched toward the southern horizon. Each of us, in turn, saw several pieces of the Perseids meteoric offerings. It was no hard challenge to watch the night sky--the moon is new, so it's hiding from sight, and the Milky Way is at its brightest and milkiest. Even the satellites passing overhead were worth watching.

The Sun and its faithful sun dog, off to the right.

These are signs not only of the changing seasons, but they also portend great things for those of us laboring on this mortal coil. Watch the night sky for these signs, for they are trying to tell you something, too.

This sun dog took a ride on a mare's tail across the afternoon sky.

This afternoon we attended the lovely, enchanting wedding of Marilyn Wesel and Wil Hemker. Our hearty good wishes to the happy couple. May they enjoy the Perseids together for decades to come.

The sun kicks off its sun dogs and settles into bed, bringing on the end of another day on Indigo Hill.