Watching The Night Sky With A Telescope Will Expand The Universe For Your Kids
Who hasn't admired the beauty of the night sky? There is a historical, cultural and religious meaning to the picture mankind has created about the night sky throughout thousands of years of history. Most ancient cultures devoted a great attention to the study of the sky map and planned their lives and activities respecting the cult of the asters: cults of the sun, ritual astronomic sites, calenders and even legends and myths gravitate around constellations, stars and other celestial bodies. And all these start with the belief that Earth is a unitary element in the harmony of the universe. Modern man is no longer paying that much attention to the night sky.
Why We View The Night Sky
The night sky is presently scrutinized with other scopes in mind: we search for scientific evidence to support the theory of UFO visitation, we watch major cosmic events with the help of huge telescopes that get an insight of the inner life of the galaxy or we simply feel fascinated by the beauty of the high spheres.
To share the beauty of the universe, you should expose your kids to the mysteries of the universe. The good news is that kids telescopes are quite inexpensive and easy to use. The best telescopes for beginners are made by a host of different optic companies in all shapes, sizes and cost. The Meade etx 90ec or etx 105 are both very affordable and setup for novices, but also have features that are often only available on the more pricey models.
Also, the picture of the night sky is different according to the time of the year and the movement of the earth around the sun. The map of the night sky as we see it today was first envisaged by the Greek who actually gave the name to many of the constellations.
A Clearer View Of The Stars And Planets
Given the present condition of our atmosphere, the night sky vision is often blurred because of pollution. One thing is for sure, a large metropolis with lots of industrial activity and plenty of cars running permanently make a lousy astronomy observation spot. Many people claim to have seen the most beautiful of night sky panoramas in the mountains, where the altitude increases panorama viewing because of the rarer atmosphere. The clearer the sky, the better the visibility of the night sky. For those who take a great pleasure in astronomy, the study of the constellations with the help of various softwares and private telescopes is definitely rewarding.
Signs Of The Zodiac
Last but not least, the study of the zodiac is directly related to the position of the stars on the night sky. Every sign of the zodiac has an afferent constellation, and the study of the sun and earth moves as well as the position of the planets and the stars in the night sky influence the zodiac. This is in fact the astrological explanation why people born under the same sign share a set of similarities. All in all, we have never stopped keeping the eyes focused on the universe, as the interdependence is sometimes more than obvious.
How to Store and Transport Clean Drinking Water
If you are like most Americans, you are aware that water supplies are not as dependable as we would like. Over 2100 contaminants have been discovered in drinking water thus far. Our water source may be free of some of these, but who knows which are still present?
Let's assume you've acted on the warnings you have heard and have stopped drinking faucet or even well water as is. You have decided only filtered water is worthy of yourself and your family. If so, you have elected to either buy a filter and purify it yourself, or to continually purchase bottled water in some form.
Now you are planning a vacation or a camping trip and you want to take along the same pure water that you enjoy at home. If you have elected to drink bottled water, then it's simple. Just take along a case or two. Over eight billion gallons of filtered water are sold annually. In spite of the fact that water is so abundant, in bottles it could be more expensive than gasoline. But for a vacation, bottled water is probably pure enough, though maybe not as pristine as claimed by the label. Too, if you discard the dozen or more bottles you use on your vacation, you only add to the environmental problem of non-biodegradable plastics in land fills or on road sides.
Some of you have purchased a gravity feed filter. In the long run, you will save money over purchasing bottled water. If you have room, why not pack your water filter in the car and filter all drinking and cooking water on your vacation? This would provide all the water you need and would guarantee it to be as pure as you get at home. Neither will you have the problem of discarding bottles.
If your device to filter water is not portable or you simply don't have room to take it, What is the next option? Plan ahead and filter extra water now to take with you on vacation. Store it away so that you have ample clean pure water from home.
The problem is, in what do you store and transport it? You know the water is clean when it leaves the filter. You certainly don't want it deemed unsafe because of the container. This is a very real concern. The PET bottles (made of polyethylene terephthalate) used by most bottled water companies, are, as far as we know now, safe as long as they are kept in cool places. Water stored in them at higher temperatures for a period of time might become contaminated with chemicals from the bottle. Reusing them is not sanitary either.
Another option is to store your filtered water in the hard plastic bottles used for water coolers, or the smaller ones used for sports drinks. They look safe but the National Institutes of Health recently tested bisphenol used to make these bottles, and found it caused neurological problems in babies before birth. The long range effect on others is still the subject of further study. So that option may be out of the picture for you.
This narrows our choices even more. We want the pure water from home but can't bring the filter. If we transport it, we are in danger of ingesting substances leeched into the water from the containers that may harm us or our families. Solution- filter extra water at home prior to the vacation and store it in glass containers. This would include jars, bottles, and glass lined thermoses.
This solution answers several problems. First we won’t have the discarded bottle problem, nor the plastic leeching problem of those bottles. We will have the save clean water we filter at home, and when the bottles are empty, they can be washed and reused without danger. The resulting peace of mind will only add to the enjoyment of your vacation.
Fishing Crappie In The Spring
Old School Crappie Fishing Family Secrets
Well anglers now that winter is near over and the ice is off most of the lakes, ponds, rivers and streams all we need to do know is wait for the crappie spawn to catch some big slab spring crappie. Wrong! You are missing out on some of the most amazing spring crappie fishing. The fishing pressure will be light because of the still very cold weather. If you can tolerate some cold crummy weather you will experience some of the most amazing spring crappie fishing.
After ice out it is time to go out and start your spring crappie fishing. After ice out, the crappie are still holding in deep water but will start their move into holding areas close to their spawning beds. They will be hungry and will be there feeding in Ernest. The water is extremely cold, so you will have to use a very slow bait presentation. The trick is being able to locate the fish, there are some fundamentals you need to be aware of to find the giant pre-spawn spring crappie. Just a reminder, it will not be nesessary to be out on the lake at the crack of dawn. The best time to go early spring crappie fishing is in the afternoon because the sun has had time to warm the water a bit and the crappie feed on the moving bait fish more in the afternoon.
Start your spring crappie fishing trip at the location where the ice fisherman were last catching crappie. If you don't ice fish contact some ice fisherman and find out their last fishing locations. The fish will be holding at these locations right after ice out. If your lake is shallow, head to the deeper boat channels around your lake, the fish will be locate here. If you are fishing a deep lake one of the best spots to fish will be where there are narrow creek channels feeding from the main lake. The spring crappies will be located there. I rivers head for channels that feed off the main river.
When fishing In cold water I prefer ultra light equipment. You will find that in cold water spring crappie will bite very light. Use a very light test line around 2 to 4lb test, with a open face rod and reel combo that has a graphite rod with a sensitive tip. If you are breaking line and snagging a lot move to 4lb fluorocarbon.. I recommend you use 1/32oz or 1/16oz jig heads that have eyes painted on them. The color of the jig head can very, but my preference is chartreuse or pink. with split tail plastic tubes. with some glitter color. My preference is to use clear color tubes with some glitter color in them for clear water. In murky water use white or yellow. If the water is real muddy use chartreuse.
If you use these tips you will be successful. When you catch a giant slab crappie in early spring there is no better feeling. Well good luck with your spring crappie fishing.
Mark Fleagle is a serious fishing webmaster. Mark Is a dedicated fisherman with 30+ years of experience and has published numerous articles on fishing. He offers free fishing information and "how to articles at his websites. fishing crappie in spring and get some amazing crappie fishing secrets from some good ol' boys who survived by discovering unique and brilliant methods of catching crappie. Also visit my website oldfishinghole.com and download a free copy of his "78 fishing discoveries unleashed"
Tips on How to Make a Fire for Camping
Camping is always associated with fire. Beside for the cooking purpose, this fire will keep us warm in the night and to shoo the wild animals away. Find out the tips to make the fire for camping.
Around the Fire
From books and moving pictures we all know that Indians had the ability to maintain smokeless fires, and that trapper could blot out the sites of their fires without leaving the slightest trace behind. But we're not always able to imitate these models. We gaily follow the recipe take some wood and light it. But there's far more to it than that.
Finding the Right Type of Wood
Before you build a fire, you must first have a good supply of firewood on hand. It's embarrassing to realize that there's no more wood when your hot dog is only half done. For a smokeless fire you need completely dry, brittle wood. The driest branches are those that have lost their bark and never feel cold; cold wood is damp and heavy, and it is useless to you unless you want to dry it out at a fire first. You can find dry brittle wood even after a rain. Look for branches under dense shrubbery (that's a bit of old gypsy lore) or find the lowest dead branches of young pine trees, which are especially suitable for starting fires.
Only a greenhorn would start a fire with wood that still has green leaves hanging on it. Such wood is usable only if you already have a strong fire. Thick, dead limbs of old oaks, dried roots and trunks make good heating material. In rainy weather, cut away the top layer of wet sticks; the center will be dry.
Kindling a fire
This is almost like a game of skill. First, clean the site where you are going to lay your fire, and scrape the ground all around it so that you leave nothing that may be ignited by a flying spark. Then, start with paper, dried grass or reeds, dried leaves and twigs, birch bark or paper thin shavings. Set up a little pyramid of the thinnest, driest twigs over this. Then, to get a strong flame, lay brittle softwood branches on top of the pile. Finally, to produce effective heat and a good glow, add pieces of root and thick hardwood sticks.
The hardwoods include oak, beech, poplar, birch and hickory. Hazel, spruce, pine and fir are all softwoods. The paper thin outer layer of birch bark is ideal for kindling.
Set fire to the core of the pyramid only when it is finished. If kindling piles are skillfully built, it is possible to light them with a magnifying glass if the sun is out brightly. As long ago as 278 B.C. the inventive Archimedes saved the Sicilian city of Syracuse with this principle. He erected a huge reflector on the city wall and set fire to the enemy fleet with it. Soon the fleet was swimming in bright flames on the sea. I wasn't there myself, but I have often lighted a well prepared, dry kindling pyramid with my pocket burning glass.
Before making the fire, search for the right type of wood which is dry, so easy it will be easy to burn. Arrange the woods in a pyramid form to produce such level of heat to warm the night.
About the Author
Mitch Johnson is a regular writer for http://www.best-scopes-n-binoculars.com/,http://www.campfunguide.info/,http://www.goodbudgetholiday.info/
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Tips on How to Make a Fire for Camping