5th January 2025
Northern Lights
Photograph – Aurora Borealis, Glen Convinth, Inverness-shire, Highland Scotland
A subtle but beautiful display of the Aurora Borealis above Highland Scotland last night and for the technical the disturbance level was reported at 135nT. For the rest of us there was about twenty minutes when there was a shifting pattern of green light on and above the Northern horizon.
3rd January 2025
Venus
Illustration
A special event for lovers of the night in the last few days, Venus was especially bright in the sky and close to the new moon.
23rd December 2024
Just in time for Christmas it’s not just people who have problems with alcohol
Illustration
If you were in Sweden and found a Moose (European Elk) with its head stuck in a tree being ‘under the influence’ would probably not be the first reason for its predicament you would think of but you could be wrong. This was one of the reports confirming alcohol use and abuse is not just for people in a new review of evidence by a team cantered on The University of Exeter that has shown that many animals ranging from insects to elephants and primates consume alcohol from natural sources and sometimes really suffer the effects.
Trends in Ecology and Evolution – The evolutionary ecology of ethanol
The review notes that the natural alcohol sources of sugar rich fruits and fermenting yeasts have been around since the Cretaceous period which even throws up a vision of a drunk dinosaur and although there is absolutely no evidence to support this even the slightest possibility is terrifying. It’s also possible that evidence could be available. Dinosaur footprints are still being discovered, what if there were a set where it looked like walking in a straight line was too much of a challenge?
Photographs, text and illustrations ©Nick Sidle, all rights reserved