↓
 

Tag Archives: Drawing

Active Region 2781

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on by

Drawing Active Region 2781 Well, finally I got to see Active Region 2781 !! This active region is an enormous sunspot island of activity. AR 2718 is making its way across the Earth-facing surface of the sun. The last few years have given us crumbs in sunspot regions. However, the suns new eleven-year solar cycle has begun. We can look forward to more action in the future. This active region is over 100,000 km long. I was pleased to be lucky enough to have the time and a sunshine morning to capture it. These are somewhat complex drawings to do. Sometimes my pastel blows off the page before I get to fix it. I also have to try to balance the focus and the bandwidth every few minutes to enable clarity. Or at least the best achievable clarity. That morning the seeing wasn’t the best. The edge of the solar disc was wobbling like the heat haze you sometimes see … Continue reading →

Drawing the Perseids

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on by

Drawing a meteor shower On several occasions in the past, I have drawn the Perseid meteor shower. I am not sure if anyone else has done this ? I might be the only mad woman to have tried. The Perseids are fast and are therefore in my opinion the most fun meteor shower of the year. With luck the sky is clear and the air is warm. You can sit back and be enthralled by the action of ancient pieces of comet debris hitting our atmosphere at 37 miles a second. Video about the method Because it is an enjoyable excercise,  I decided to share how I go about recording the meteors in the video above. The pencil drawings are done on the night in real-time. I use a clip board and an A4 sheet of paper.  The colour version is usually produced the following day. It is difficult to see colour properly in the dark. It is, therefore, more … Continue reading →

Go Observe C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE)

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on by

Comets are the ultimate solar system travellers. I love finding them, to follow and also to draw. They are exciting because they move and morph. C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) is one such visitor. Seasonally we have the changing constellations. As predictable as a ticking clock. On view constantly  are circumpolar constellations. Planets take their turn in the sky to show themselves off.  Our moon is always gorgeous and as steady as a rock can be, one of our night sky beautys. However comets are so unpredictable, that is part of their allure. They may or may not make it round the sun. Perhaps they might crash into Jupiter. One  might even expand to be the largest object in the solar system. Or they might have internal gas explosions causing them to spin. Some have huge tails and some lose their tails. The very best kind reveal themselves to everyone on the planet by becoming visible to the unaided eye. C/2020 F3 … Continue reading →

Rainbow Challenge Drawings

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on by

It gave me great pleasure to be part of Cruinniu na nOg for the third time. The unique circumstances of 2020 allowed me to produce a piece of work that exists online for all to use. My Rainbow Challenge video was intended to build on the abundance of rainbows drawn by children during the pandemic. The intention was to hopefully be sent rainbow challenge drawings that reflected learning. Making the video was a challenge in itself because I wanted it to engage people and be useful. Creating the content was not as easy as I thought it would be, However, I slowly got a little more familiar with the software and the problems it threw at me. It is taking time to get used to what the various tools do and even how to access them. It will take a good while yet for all of it to become easy. Issues like, do I record voice and draw at the … Continue reading →

Drawing Active Regions

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on by

Active Region 2765 In very difficult windy conditions I finally managed to do a drawing of Active Region 2765. It was the first decent sunspot region on the sun for a long time. Drawing active regions is a challenging activity and a rewarding one in equal measures. Challenging because they are complex visually. Rewarding because every time you try you have to invent new ways of using materials to gain traction on accuracy. The previous day I had looked at AR 2765 and started a complex drawing using pastel particles. However, the wind made the telescope shake and the drawing became impossible. The shape of the active region was dramatic that day, with wonderful swirling shapes in the mottling around the penumbra. A long filament with clearly defined anchors added to the view. The drawing was abandoned in frustration over the wind and occasional showers of rain. Next day I tried again, this time there was less wind to bother … Continue reading →

Rainbow Challenge

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on by

Normal Just a few weeks ago I was lamenting ( in this blog) the fact that I had nothing to offer an annual Irish creative festival. Cruinniu na nOg (The meeting of the Young). This is a free festival for children and young people all over Ireland. Last year I was in libraries in Castlebar Co Mayo with my workshops Lets Go to the Moon. The previous year I was in Birr Library Co Offaly with Stars Wonderful Stars. They were actual workshops with lots of children, pre COVID 19 when face to face was normal. New normal I decided almost as I was writing that blog to try to make a video which might be relevant. My idea was based on the fact that children have been drawing and painting rainbows as a response to the COVID 19 crisis. A lot of rainbow hugs for healthcare workers. So I figured maybe a little knowledge about how rainbows come about … Continue reading →

50th Anniversary Moon Landing

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on by

  On July 19th it was my pleasure to run two Apollo 11drawing workshops for children in Co Sligo Ireland. This was the eve of the 50th Anniversary of the Apollo moon landing. Seeing the moon landing live on TV 50 years ago was a big deal to me. It influenced my life in many ways, it still does. Therefore being so close to July 20th, I included my workshops as part of the global celebration of Apollo 11 in the IAU ( International Astronomical Union) events list. You can see mine and  the events from all over the world here. Its interesting how the Apollo moon landing absolutly pulled the entire planet together as one back in 1969. A few hours of focused global awe for the achievements of three men on our behalf. We need more of that unity, we need it so much. Ocean FM based in Co Sligo interviewed me about the Apoll 11 moon landing … Continue reading →

Apollo Moon Masterpiece

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on by

Way back in time when I was just 11 years old I bought myself a copy of National Geographic Magazine. The February 1969 issue came with a large comprehensive moon map. The map is jam-packed with moon information, including the proposed sites for the Apollo Missions. This Apollo Moon masterpiece shown above is a true thing of beauty. This treasure has been on my wall for decades, an inspiration every time I look at it. The original artwork for the near and far side of the moon was hand-painted by cartographic artist Tibor Toth.   There were no computers in graphic art at the time. The map was designed by Dave Cook who also did most of the writing for the gorgeous snippets of lunar information included in every nook and cranny. Others credited with the work on the map are  Richard Furno, Dave Moore, and Jay Igno. Back then copying and pasting was just exactly that, cutting out text … Continue reading →

Cruinniu na nOg 2019 – Apollo 11 Drawing Workshop

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on by

I really enjoyed taking part in Cruinniu na nOg last year. The preparation, the fun, the smiles,and the work produced. This year because of COVID 19 the events are all online.  I have found myself unprepared for it and will miss out this time. However, I am working on some online ideas and hope that these efforts will be useful in the future.  Here is what happened in two venues in 2019. Cruinniu na nOg  means the meeting of the young in the Irish language. Creative activities are funded on that special day by the local authorities all over the country. The overarching body is  called Creative Ireland. Ireland as a country therefore  backs creativity nationwide for all her children. My drawing workshop Let’s Go To The Moon – Apollo 11 became part of this government initiative to stimulate creativity. Cruinniu na nOg is aimed to encourage children to get involved in new experiences while creating and also having fun. … Continue reading →

Astronomy Club Stories

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on by

On March 22nd 2013 Br Guy Consolmagno came to visit St Cronans National School in Bray Co Wicklow. Even though he had  a very busy schedule while in Ireland,  he had kindly agreed to this extra task. The object was to say hello to my astronomy club boys. I had been running the club since 2010. Its members were school boys and their parents. We met once a month  and engaged in wide-ranging interesting astronomy. There was great excitement and anticipation at the school that day. So when we arrived the hall was filled to capacity with 500 boys. My club had about 18 boys. Br Guy wasn’t phased by the unexpected volume of children waiting for his every word. He also signed a copy of his book Turn Left at Orion for the school library. It was a red-letter day for the school, everyone was so happy. St Cronans Stargazers Astronomy Club In our little astronomy club we took … Continue reading →

Crater Virus infects Science Week Drawings

Recently here in Ireland we had the phenomena that is Science Week. A nationwide effort by hundreds of people to open the many facets of science to children and adults all over the country.  My offerings were workshops about the Apollo 11 moon landing called Let’s Go To The Moon – Apollo 11, Deadly Moons and Marvellous Mars. All of which I have written about in the past hit the links to check them out. This year a unique crater virus came to visit and spread itself around many drawings. Guidance Increasingly I have being introducing drawing techniques in my workshops.  Sometimes the effect has a slow uptake and other times it has an immediate viral effect. One such action is a tip on crater drawing , kids just love it. Here below we see some drawings that benefited from simple guidence. Examples of the crater virus that invaded hundreds of drawings and created smiles all over the room.   … Continue reading →


Ultima Thule – resistance is futile

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on by

  During World Space Week I was invited to do my workshop Pluto WOW !!!  for a small group of children .   I put the workshop together in order to highlight the incredible images sent back by the New Horizons Spacecraft.  This year it was impossible to resist including Ultima Thule the new flyby target of New Horizons. Pluto WOW ! When I was a child there were nine planets in the solar system , that was my reality. Pluto being the farthest planet was almost a myth as there were no proper images of it for many years.  The Hubble Space Telescope wonderful  as it is only managed unclear nondescript photographs. When New Horizons left Earth to flyby Pluto it was still a proper member of the planet family. Along that journey the status of Pluto was altered forever, when it was demoted to being merely a dwarf planet.   New Horizons continued its pioneering journey to discover what Pluto … Continue reading →

↑
Skip to toolbar