Launch of Firefly Alpha FLT005

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Wide-angle photograph of the Firefly Alpha launch. The exhaust plume from the 1st stage can be seen low near the horizon while the rapidly expanding rocket exhaust from the 2nd stage develops an arch shape. Also visible is the red glow in the ionosphere.
Wide-angle photograph of the Firefly Alpha launch. The exhaust plume from the 1st stage can be seen low near the horizon while the rapidly expanding rocket exhaust from the 2nd stage develops an arch shape. Also visible is the red glow in the ionosphere.

The 5th flight of a Firefly Alpha rocket was launched from Vandenberg Space Flight Base last week (03 July 2024). This was the first time I had observed a Firefly launch and was not certain what to expect. I started photographing the launch using a telephoto (80mm) but a few minutes into the flight I realized I needed a wide-angle lens (12mm) to fully capture the rapidly expanding rocket exhaust.

Firefly Alpha rises above the trees as seen from Upper Lake Mary near Flagstaff, Arizona. (80mm telephoto)
Firefly Alpha rises above the trees as seen from Upper Lake Mary near Flagstaff, Arizona. (80mm telephoto)

I manually tracked the flight and captured a few more images in which the 1st stage and fairings can be seen.

Firefly Alpha 2nd stage rocket with 1st stage following a short distance behind.
Firefly Alpha 2nd stage rocket with 1st stage following a short distance behind.
Firefly Alpha launch with 2nd stage. The 1st stage is executing a spiral as it begins its descent.
Firefly Alpha launch with 2nd stage. The 1st stage is executing a spiral as it begins its descent.
The 1st stage continues to produce a spiral rocket exhaust cloud.
The 1st stage continues to produce a spiral rocket exhaust cloud.

Using the wide angle lens I was able to capture a sequence of images suitable for time lapse, presented below.

Time lapse video of the Firefly Alpha rocket launch from Vandenberg SFB on 03 July 2024.

As noted above, I switched from a telephoto lens to wide angle lens a few minutes into the flight–thus the time lapse starts well after launch. Nonetheless, the rapidly expanding rocket exhaust shows up well. Also, there is a hole punched in the ionosphere causing it to glow red. This video was featured on Spaceweather.com and a description of the red glow was provided:

The lingering red glow is “the hole.” Earth’s ionosphere is a layer of electrically-conducting gas enveloping our planet more than 100 km high. It plays a key role in shortwave radio communications and GPS positioning. When Alpha burned through the ionosphere, water and carbon dioxide in therocket’s exhaust quenched local ionization by as much as 70%. Red light is the afterglow of this process.

It was spectacular to watch and photograph. As always, I look forward to additional launches from Vandenberg SFB.

An Early but Brief Start of the Monsoon

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The North American Monsoon got an early start in northern Arizona this year with copious amounts of precipitation over the San Francisco Peaks and surrounding areas. Unfortunately, we are now experiencing an extended monsoon break with mostly clear skies and hot temperatures.

Here are some photograph taken during that wet period.

A partial rainbow over Upper Lake Mary near Flagstaff, Arizona.
A partial rainbow over Upper Lake Mary near Flagstaff, Arizona.
The rainbow is gone but sunset colors are seen in the clouds and the reflection in the lake.
The rainbow is gone but sunset colors are seen in the clouds and the reflection in the lake.
A partial rainbow over the grasslands of Wupatki National Monument.
A partial rainbow over the grasslands of Wupatki National Monument.
A zoomed-in segment of the rainbow showing supernumary bows.
A zoomed-in segment of the rainbow showing supernumary bows.
Sunset at Wukoki Pueblo in Wupatki National Monument.
Sunset at Wukoki Pueblo in Wupatki National Monument.

Here are the June rainfall totals from the Flagstaff rain gauge network.

June rainfall totals for the Flagstaff raingage network.
June rainfall totals for the Flagstaff raingage network.

Sedona Moonrise–June 2024

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It is the season for capturing the nearly-full Moon as it rises behind Cathedral Rock in Sedona, Arizona. The best time to capture this is a day (or two) before the actual full Moon so that late afternoon sunlight still illuminates Cathedral Rock. The Photographers Ephemeris (TPE) was used to determine the best location to shoot this as it became visible between the towers.

Unfortunately, there was a major dust storm the day and dust remained in the air partially obscuring the Moon at lower elevation angles. The Moon got brighter as it rose higher in the sky.

The nearly full Moon rises behind Cathedral Rock in Sedona, Arizona.
The nearly full Moon rises behind Cathedral Rock in Sedona, Arizona.

And here is a time-lapse sequence of the Moon rising.

Time-lapse sequence of the Moon rising behind Cathedral Rock.

Bonus:

Here is additional Moon photograph taken at Upper Lake Mary near Flagstaff in early June. I was going for the reflection.

Moonlight reflected in Upper Lake Mary from a crescent Moon.
Moonlight reflected in Upper Lake Mary from a crescent Moon.

 

 

Milky Way and a Fisheye Lens

I have taken countless photographs of the Milky Way using anything from ultrawide to telephoto lenses. But I have never taken a photograph of the Milky Way with a fisheye lens until now.

The Milky Way along with bands of airglow stretch across the eastern sky.
The Milky Way along with bands of airglow stretch across the eastern sky.

I like the result because it shows a large part of the Milky Way from south of the Galactic Center northward almost–but not quite–to Cassiopeia. Cygnus can be seen in the center.

As a bonus there is some banded airglow along the eastern horizon.

SpaceX/Falcon 9 De-Orbit Burn–III

Here are a few more SpaceX Falcon 9 deorbit burns observed over Arizona during the latter half of May.

SpaceX Falcon 9 second-stage deorbit burn on 31 May 2024.
SpaceX Falcon 9 second-stage deorbit burn on 31 May 2024.

SpaceX has launched frequently during this time period and many of the flights pass over the southwest United States and Arizona. The timing of the deorbit burn is fortuitous as it occurs just as the 2nd stage of the rocket appears above the western horizon and continues until it is near the zenith. This results in very favorable conditions for taking photographs and video of the event.

SpaceX Falcon 9 second-stage deorbit burn on 23 May 2024.
SpaceX Falcon 9 second-stage deorbit burn on 23 May 2024.
SpaceX Falcon 9 second-stage deorbit burn on 22 May 2024. This is a 1-second exposure with 80mm telephoto lens.
SpaceX Falcon 9 second-stage deorbit burn on 22 May 2024. This is a 1-second exposure with 80mm telephoto lens.
SpaceX Falcon 9 second-stage deorbit burn on 22 May 2024.
SpaceX Falcon 9 second-stage deorbit burn on 22 May 2024.

I have used both ultra-wide angle and fisheye lenses and really like the result from the latter as it is able to capture the lake reflections as well as the entire burn even as it passes overhead. One time I used a short telephoto (80mm); I may try this again.

Some of the images use 30-second exposures while others use a very short 2-second exposure which is useful for creating time-lapse video.

Time lapse video (2-second exposures) of the SpaceX Falcon 9 deorbit burn.

It’s interesting how all the image and videos show a burn that ends as it approaches the zenith followed by a splash of color as it moves overhead and leaving a circular red patch in the sky. It’s possible that the red is from the chemical reaction of the exhaust gases with the ionized air in the ionosphere. This red coloring of the ionosphere has been noted before with launches ascending into orbit so it is possible that the same chemical reaction takes place on descent.

Additional images of SpaceX Falcon 9 deorbit burns: 13 April 2024;  02 May 2024.