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KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – This month we’ll focus on a local astronomy resource rather than on the night skies.
That resource is Taylor Observatory.
Taylor Observatory is located in Kelseyville at 5725 Oak Hills Lane (for a map, go here: www.bit.ly/1DQAorI ).
The observatory features a large 16-inch research grade telescope under a dome.
The telescope is controlled by a computer and can automatically locate more than 140,000 celestial objects!
Norton Planetarium is located in the facility, with a state-of-the-art star projector that provides realistic views of the night sky.
The projector also displays movies that cover the entire dome (full dome movies).
There is a classroom that can seat as many as 55 people. The classroom has a “smart board” that is used for the projection of images and Web pages.
The facility is open to the public on the fourth Saturday of the month between the hours of 8 and 11 p.m.
During a public event, there is a classroom presentation, followed by a planetarium show. Afterward, there is telescope viewing. Admission is $5 per adult and $3 per child under 12.
Taylor Observatory has been in continuous operation since 1980. It is owned by the Lake County Office of Education.
Friends of Taylor Observatory, a nonprofit corporation, supports the operation of the facility.
Taylor Observatory is only one of a very few facilities in Northern California that has both a large telescope and a planetarium. It is a unique and valuable Lake County resource.
For more information, visit the observatory’s Web site at www.taylorobservatory.org .
Information about Friends of Taylor Observatory can be found at www.friendsoftaylor.org .
John Zimmerman is a resident of Lake County and has been an amateur astronomer for more than 50 years. For more information about astronomy and local resources, visit his Web site at www.lakecountyskies.com .
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County Animal Care and Control this week has a shelter filled with dogs that can serve roles both as companions and working dogs.
The dogs available this week are mixes of boxer, cattle dog, Chihuahua, Great Dane, Labrador Retriever, pit bull, Shar Pei, shepherd and terrier.
Dogs that are adopted from Lake County Animal Care and Control are either neutered or spayed, microchipped and, if old enough, given a rabies shot and county license before being released to their new owner. License fees do not apply to residents of the cities of Lakeport or Clearlake.
If you're looking for a new companion, visit the shelter. There are many great pets hoping you'll choose them.
In addition to the animals featured here, all adoptable animals in Lake County can be seen here: http://bit.ly/Z6xHMb .
The following dogs at the Lake County Animal Care and Control shelter have been cleared for adoption (additional dogs on the animal control Web site not listed are still “on hold”).
Pit bull terrier mix
This handsome male pit bull terrier mix has a short tan and white coat.
He's in kennel No. 6, ID No. 1664.
Pit bull terrier mix
This female pit bull terrier mix has a pretty face and a short gray and white coat.
She's in kennel No. 9, ID No. 1663.
'Snoopy'
“Snoopy” is a 10-year-old male shepherd mix looking for a mellow home.
He weighs nearly 50 pounds and has a short tricolor coat.
He has a low adoption fee as he is already neutered.
Snoopy loves people, and he gets along with low energy dogs because in the past he was attacked by another dog.
If you have dogs and are interested in Snoopy, shelter staff requests that an application to be filled out and bring your dogs for a meet and greet
He's in kennel No. 12, ID No. 1650.
Shar Pei-pit bull mix
This young male Shar Pei-pit bull mix has a short, dark-colored coat.
He's in kennel No. 17, ID No. 1684.
'Rascal'
“Rascal” is a friendly 6-year-old terrier-Chihuahua mix who came in with his brother, “Copper,” after they were found in Lakeport.
He weighs nearly 16 pounds, has a short black and white coat, and is already neutered, so he has a low adoption fee.
Rascal is in kennel No. 25a, ID No. 1430.
'Copper'
“Copper” is a friendly 2-year-old male terrier mix who was found wandering with his brother, “Rascal.”
He has a short brown and white coat, weighs 20 pounds and already is neutered, so he has a low adoption fee.
Copper is in kennel No. 25b, ID No. 1429.
Cattle dog mix
This young male cattle dog mix has a short white coat with reddish-brown markings.
He is in kennel No. 26a, ID No. 1722.
Boxer mix pup
This female boxer mix puppy has a short dark coat with white markings.
She is in kennel No. 26b, ID No. 1723.
Great Dane mix
This 2-year-old male Great Dane and mastiff mix has a black and white coat.
He weighs 77 pounds and shelter staff said he is good with other dogs. He needs leash work, but he listens very well and will sit on command.
Come and meet this super sweet boy in kennel No. 27, ID No. 1581.
Labrador Retriever mix
This 4-year-old male Labrador Retriever mix has a short tan and brown coat.
Shelter staff said he is a big happy dog, weighing 74 pounds.
He would rather be around female dogs than male dogs. If you are interested in him and have dogs, shelter staff requests a meet and greet.
He's in kennel No. 28, ID No. 1577.
Fox terrier
This lovely female fox terrier mix is about 1 year old.
She weighs 25 pounds and has a short coat that is mostly white with black markings.
Shelter staff said she comes off a little shy at first but since she loves to cuddle, she will warm right up to you.
She is good with other male and female dogs, large or small, and overall is a great dog.
The perfect home for her would be one where she gets lots of walks and someone who enjoys cuddling with her.
She's in kennel No. 34, ID No. 1676.
To fill out an adoption application online visit http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control/Adopt/Dog___Cat_Adoption_Application.htm .
Lake County Animal Care and Control is located at 4949 Helbush in Lakeport, next to the Hill Road Correctional Facility.
Office hours are Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday. The shelter is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Visit the shelter online at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control.htm .
For more information call Lake County Animal Care and Control at 707-263-0278.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
The highly anticipated update of the analysis of data from the European Space Agency's Planck satellite starts with a first paper published in Astronomy and Astrophysics, which already holds in store a few major surprises.
The first article in fact “rejuvenates” the stars of our Universe. Thanks to new maps of cosmic background radiation (in particular, those containing “polarization anisotropies” of radiation) scientists have found that the “reionization” process could be more recent than estimated until now.
Reionization is one of the most important processes in cosmology as it is associated with star formation, which cosmologists data back to after the “dark ages” of the Universe, when there was still no starlight.
The NASA WMAP satellite, launched in 2001, had given an initial estimate of the period when the process may have taken place.
The discovery, which still requires validation by the measurements that Planck is still able to provide that will be published in about a year's time, is associated with the publication of maps of “polarized” cosmic background radiation (the first light in the Universe produced by the Big Bang).
WMAP was the first satellite to attempt to provide this map, but today new Planck data suggest that reionization may have occurred approximately 550 million years after the Big Bang, I.e., 100 million years later than WMAP had estimated.
“According to Planck's observations, stars may be younger than believed, in bearing with other independent astrophysical indicators, and this finding may have major consequences on our attempts to understand the dark components of the Universe,” explained Carlo Baccigalupi, SISSA cosmologist and coordinator of the SISSA group involved in the Planck experiment.
“The contribution of the Trieste team involved in producing maps for the LFI on board Planck – consisting of SISSA and INAF-OATS scientists coordinated by Andrea Zacchei – was to generate new maps of the polarized light seen by the LFI which cover the whole sky. Now we're awaiting data from the high-frequency instrument (HFI), whose maps are mostly constructed by the French team. These additional maps should provide confirmation and a clearer picture of the evidence we detected,” said Baccigalupi.
Planck is a European Space Agency satellite, designed to observe, with an unprecedented degree of accuracy, the Big Bang through cosmic microwave background radiation.
Proposed in the early 90s, the satellite and its instruments were developed thanks to huge efforts that involved several national space agencies in Europe coordinated by ESA, whereas the NASA developed the cooling system.
On-ground analysis of the data has been conducted in only two centres in the world, Paris and Trieste.
In Trieste, in particular, SISSA, INAF-Astronomical Observatory of Trieste, and the University of Trieste participate in the Data Processing Centre for the low-frequency instrument.
In recent years, about 15 scientists from the three institutions collaborated intensely with continuous exchanges with the rest of the Planck collaboration made up of the world's leading experts in data analysis, computer science, cosmology and astrophysics for a total of over 200 scientists and technicians.
“There is a fox in me ... a silver-gray fox ... I sniff and guess ... I pick things out of the wind and air ... I nose in the dark night and take sleepers and eat them and hide the feathers ... I circle and loop and double-cross.” – Carl Sandburg
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The yipping, barking sound a fox makes can sound similar to a small dog.
I heard the barking for several days running, and thought a neighbor's small dog was loose.
One day the gray fox made herself known to me, and then I knew the “barking” was not a dog, but a fox, or vixen, as female foxes as called.
Now that I knew the sounds of a fox, I was not at all annoyed, but conversely, I listened ever so intently each time I left the house, for the sounds of the crafty fox, and it brought a smile to my face each time I recognized its call.
Throughout the course of the next few days, I was made privy to the antics of the vixen's kits. The young foxes are also called pups, or cubs.
The two rambunctious furballs played about, and tumbled - looking like blissful flashes of red and gray.
The pups ran about and took liberties with any gardening paraphernalia I had carelessly left about, such as gloves, plant marker-sticks and a hat.
The vixen stood guard and carefully watched over her young charges – the ever-dutiful mother.
Gray fox belongs to the biologic family canid, which includes coyotes, wolves and dogs.
Our neighbors since the Pliocene era of the geologic timeline, fox has been around for millions of years. Fossils found in Arizona are proof of this amazing fact.
The gray fox differs genetically from red fox, or Vulpes, and shares similar family lines with the ancient raccoon dog, Nyctereutes procyonoides as well as the African bat-eared fox, or Otocyon megalotis.
The male fox is known as a tod or a dog, while an assemblage of foxes is called, surprisingly enough, an earth, a leash or a skulk.
Gray foxes, or Urocyon cinereoargenteus, are omnivores, eating more small mammals in the east, but here in California they dine more often on insects, herbs and fruit.
Red foxes can be found in California, but, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife they are non-native and pose a threat to “vulnerable species and ecosystems because they are so highly adaptable and are such adept hunters.”
Fox features prominently in the mythology of many cultures. In Greek mythology the Alopekos Teumesios is known as an enormous fox that was disciplined by the gods to Thebes for committing a crime. Zeus flung fox up to the stars into the constellation Lepus (the Fox), or Canis Minor.
In Japan they call the fox kitsune, and they figure largely in the folklore of Japan. The fox is considered to be a character of high intelligence, with this attribute increasing with age. Kitsune feature magical characteristics in ancient Japan.
The folktales of Japan talk about the fox's affinity for tricking people, and that they can become shape-shifters, and remake themselves into women.
As a trickster, Japanese fox stories state that they can be merely mischievous or even malicious.
Some other characteristics fox possess in the Japanese culture are that they can have up to nine tails, and that the higher the number of tails, the more influence and power it exerts.
In contemporary culture the Japanese depict fox in many popular books and movies, such as anime, and they also show up frequently in video games.
“The earth has music for those who listen.” – George Santayana
Kathleen Scavone, M.A., is an educator, potter, writer and author of “Anderson Marsh State Historic Park: A Walking History, Prehistory, Flora, and Fauna Tour of a California State Park” and “Native Americans of Lake County.” She also writes for NASA and JPL as one of their “Solar System Ambassadors.” She was selected “Lake County Teacher of the Year, 1998-99” by the Lake County Office of Education, and chosen as one of 10 state finalists the same year by the California Department of Education.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Forecasters' predictions for a big rainstorm came true for Lake County on Friday, with an average of several inches of rain reported at locations around the county.
The rain also brought with it some winds, along with downed trees and power lines, and dangerous conditions on some area roadways.
The two storms moving over California this weekend have been attributed both to an “atmospheric river” – a wide band of concentrated moisture – and to a “pineapple express.”
“A pineapple express is a continuous surge of tropical moisture extending from near Hawaii all the way into a West Coast storm,” AccuWeather.com Senior Meteorologist Bernie Rayno said.
AccuWeather reported that during Saturday into Saturday night, the rain over the region will taper to showers.
Then, a second storm will arrive along the West Coast Sunday into Monday, unleashing another round of heavy rain and most likely another dose of flash flooding, mudslides and travel disruptions, according to AccuWeather.
Lake County, like the rest of Northern California, had little rain in January. Last month, in fact, was the driest on record for the San Francisco area, AccuWeather reported.
However, Friday's storm brought a healthy amount of rain to the county.
Twenty-four hour totals reported through 2:30 a.m. Saturday by the National Weather Service included 1.79 inches near the High Glade Lookout above Upper Lake, 3.64 inches near Lakeport, 3.13 inches at the Lake/Colusa county line, 4.15 inches on Mt. Konocti, 5.29 inches at Lower Lake, 6.22 inches at Middletown and 6.28 inches at Whispering Pines.
The National Weather Service also reported on high wind speeds around the county on Friday. There were 40-miles-per-hour gusts at Hidden Valley Lake; Kelseyville, 42 miles per hour; Mt. Konocti, 43 miles per hour; Cow Mountain Ridge, 50 miles per hour; and at High Glade Lookout, high wind speeds of 71 miles per hour.
Clear Lake's level continued to improve thanks to the storm.
The lake was at 2.94 feet Rumsey early Friday, rising to 3.32 feet Rumsey early Saturday, according to US Geological Survey records.
Weather creates road, power issues
The city of Lakeport, which had issued several bulletins on conditions throughout the day, reported at day's end that stream levels were stable or decreasing in volume, and drainage systems were fully functional for the current rain levels.
All city roads remained open, although at around 10 p.m. Friday a tree was reported to have taken down power lines in the 1500 block of Martin Street. That closure was later reported to have been cleared.
Lakeport Public Works staff is on standby through the weekend as a precautionary measure in case of additional flooding.
Elsewhere around the county, there were road safety issues due to the weather.
At 10:45 p.m. a tree was reported to have fallen at Highway 29 and West Road south of Middletown, blocking both lanes.
Just before 11 p.m., the wet conditions contributed to reports of debris and rocks across a portion of Soda Bay Road, which a county road crew cleared. In other parts of the county there were reports of downed trees.
No major road closures were reported on the county's highways early Saturday
Elsewhere around the region, at about 10:30 p.m. the California Highway Patrol reported that Highway 175 at the Russian River Bridge in Hopland is closed due to flooding.
Power outages also occurred around the county late Friday and early Saturday due to weather conditions.
The Pacific Gas and Electric's online outage center reported that downed power lines had knocked out power to nearly 1,500 customers in Lucerne at around 11 p.m.
There also were isolated outages – with no causes reported by PG&E – in the Clearlake, Kelseyville, Lakeport and Lower Lake areas.
Lake County News will continue to post updates on conditions throughout the weekend.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lake County Library invites the public to get to know Lake County better with Know Lake County, a free lecture series that begins at noon Saturday, Feb. 21, at Lakeport Library, 1425 N. High St.
Linda Lake, curator of the Lake County museums will present a slideshow program on the history of Lake County’s one-room schools and the evolution of those early districts to the unified school districts of today.
In Lake County’s early days small one-room schools like the Binkley Ranch School, Horse Mountain School, Grizzly Canyon School, Hullville School and Glen Eden School served students in remote corners of Lake County.
As transportation developed and the population increased, the small schools consolidated into larger unified districts.
The small schoolhouses took on new uses or were torn down. Very few are left.
The Know Lake County programs will take place on the third Saturday of each month from February through December at 2 p.m. at Lakeport Library.
Know Lake County delves into many facets of Lake County, including human history, natural history, outdoor recreation, science, performing arts and programs for children.
The family-friendly programs are designed to inform and entertain Lake County residents about Lake County.
Some programs will cover interesting lore about the county and others will cover the work that community organizations perform.
For more information about Know Lake County and other library programs call 707-263-8817.
Succeeding Know Lake County programs will feature Dr. Harry Lyons on Lake County geology, Victoria Brandon from the Sierra Club speaking about the Berryessa Snow Mountain Region; Dr. Jamesina Scott from Lake County Vector Control on Lake County insects and other critters; the Lake County Master Gardeners; representatives of the Taylor Observatory; and Gae Henry with the Anderson Marsh Interpretive Association.
The year will conclude with archaeologist Dr. John Parker on Lake County’s prehistory; retired park ranger Tom Nixon representing Konocti Regional Trails; Mike Adams from the Soper Reese Theatre; and Carolyn Jarrett from the Children’s Museum of Art and Science.
Know Lake County’s full schedule is posted on the Know Lake County Web site www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Lake_County_CA__Library/KLC.htm .
The schedule is subject to change without notice.
The Lake County Library is on the Internet at http://library.co.lake.ca.us and Facebook at www.facebook.com/LakeCountyLibrary .
Library events are also posted at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Lake_County_CA__Library/Calendar.htm .
