Thursday, August 07, 2014

Aliens in the skies...

There is nothing more perfect than sat on the terrace on an evening and watching the clouds, setting sun, the darkening sky and eventually the moon and stars appearing.



Living in a rural location, away from major towns and cities means that light pollution in minimal and we often have clear skies that shows off in their full glory, constellations, distant galaxies and planets within our own solar system. On rare occasions we will see what we think is the ISS (International Space Station) or a satellite traversing the sky and if we are very lucky, shooting stars. Sometimes, we might even have spotted UFOs....



Daytime also brings with it some wonderful sights. Just yesterday we managed to watch a lone Egyptian vulture soar on the thermals and glide freely over the distant hills and mountains. It is unusual to see them this close to the coast but never-the-less a welcome sight.

The large expanse of sky is perfect for spotting birds of prey and we frequently see raptors, flocks of gulls, a murder or two of crows and many solitary bird on the wing.




Light aircraft, helicopters and gyrocopters which use the coastal route for sightseeing or travel between cities on the northern coast. The police helicopters and Fire Service helicopters are also frequent fliers overhead. Commercial passenger jets fly high above on their way to holiday destination, sometimes the only evidence is vapour trails dissipating at 30,000 feet.




The other evening we heard a terrific roar, I couldn't identify what it was but Luis immediately suggested it was a hot air balloon. Grabbing the camera, I hurried outside and sure enough, a large balloon was low in the sky just behind the studio. It became clear that it was descending and and using blasts from the gas tank to nudge the balloon in the direction of a nearby field. With great precision and skill the balloon, it's basket and occupants landed without problems in a neighbouring field.  A wonderful sight to behold but I'm still not sure I would like to go up in one... What about you?



The next time you get a chance to sit for a while and look upwards, you might be surprised at what you see....


2 comments:

  1. Oh, but think of the shots you could take from up there!

    Lovely images.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks Coco - Hmm still not sure I'd cope with the height/altitude...

    ReplyDelete

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