Rare Astronomical Event Tuesday: See It @ DeKorte!

The Record had a cool story today on tomorrow night's Transit of Venus.

The Meadowlands Commission is sponsoring a special viewing event:

“Transit of Venus”
5:30 p.m. to sunset Tuesday, June 5.
Free

The NJMC invites the public to view the Transit of Venus at the Commission’s William D. McDowell Observatory. The rare astronomical event occurs when Venus passes directly between the sun and earth. Observers will see a black dot move across the surface of the sun. The next Transit of Venus is not until 2117. This event was celebrated by many historians and artists and served as a means to measure the distance from the earth to the sun.

Event is weather permitting. NJMC William D. McDowell Observatory, DeKorte Park, Lyndhurst. 201-460-8300.

Observatory Director John Sloan is quoted in the story, saying:

"It's a once-in-a-lifetime event; I don't know how else to say it," said John Sloan, director of the William D. McDowell Observatory in the Meadowlands Environment Center. "If you work in teaching – science and math – you have the theories; you work through all the mathematics that this should occur at this date. It's nice to see that everything works."

The link to The Record's story is here.

The June DeKorte Observatory Schedule

The William D. McDowell Observatory IMG_5829in DeKorte Park begins a new month of programming tonight (Monday, June 4).

Free public access is from 9 to 10:30 on Monday and Wednesday nights  this month — weather permitting, of course.

Dress for the weather; with the dome open, you are basically outside.

Each evening at least two major objects in the night sky will be viewed, plus one or two other celestial objects or events depending on the observing conditions.

For more information about free public viewing nights and to check out the observatory's website, click here.

For a South Bergenite column by the NJMC's Jim Wright about the observatory, click here.

Kearny Marsh Cleanup: Making a Difference!

DSCN4490
The Meadowlands Commission, Bergen County Audubon Society  and the Northern New Jersey Geocachers had a 90-minute cleanup of the trail alongside the Kearny Marsh at Gunnell Oval this morning.

Everything went great. DSCN4506We had three dozen folks there, and we filled a Bagster with litter and cut away a lot of underbrush so that the trail is more walkable…

Just wanted to thank Bergen County Audubon Society and the Northern New Jersey Geocachers for their hard work, and also wanted to thank Kearny for giving us the opportunity to help keep this treasure looking great.  (And a big thank you to Waste Management for providing the Bagster!)

This is the third year in a row that the commission, Bergen Audubon and the Geocachers have done a cleanup (with Waste Management’s help) as part of National Trails Day weekend, and we are happy to report that each year there has been a little less work to do.

The photo below was taken at the end of the cleanup — the Bagster (across two parking spaces) filled with litter, old metal pipes, a lawn chair, tubing and a French beard trimmer found by Pam Mistretta, who wins a free signed Osprey print by "Meadowlands" author/artist Tom Yezerski for strangest find.

Again, thank you, Everyone!

DSCN4508(2)
DSCN4508(2)

Steve Buckingham’s DeKorte Pix

Buckingham Marsh Wren
To wet your whistle for the weekend, we thought we'd post these pix by Steve Buckingham, who writes:

I find there is always something interesting to see at DeKorte. The Marsh Wrens are signing their hearts out right now looking for love. With some patience I was able to get this photo on Sunday evening on the Marsh Discovery Trail as one of the usually shy wrens popped up for a good look.

Then, as I was driving out of DeKorte, a Black Skimmer swooped in out of nowhere, so I stopped the car and ran to the nearest vantage point on the Marsh Discovery Trail and waited for the skimmer to make another round through the area, and after a couple of minutes, he was back, allowing me to snap this:
Buckingham Black Skimmer
 A close-up of a male Red-winged Blackbird follows.

Continue reading →

Kearny Marsh Cleanup — Last-minute Advice

DSCN4470
Did a quick check of the Kaerny Marsh trails today — they are a bit wet so wear waterproof boots if you have them.  We'll have the trashbags and water — you need gloves, clippers (optional) and sunblock. 

It's probably a good idea to wear long pants, long-sleeve shirt and bug spray.

We hope to see you Sunday at 10 a.m.  Jim Wright's cellphone is 201-469-7349 if you have any questions on Sunday morning…

 

Meadowlands Big Year Update

IMG_4805

It's June 1, and we are asking for Meadowlands Big Year participants to e-mail us their totals so far  as of May 31 (if they have not done so already). 

There are  still 7 months left, so feel free to jump in and join the fun. It costs nothing to participate, and we are offering some nifty prizes.

If you are competing off the radar, please e-mail Jim Wright at jim.wright (at) njmeadowlands.gov so we know you are out there. 

Much appreciated, and good luck to all.

Competition details are here.

 

Ron Shields’ Whimbrel Shots

IMG_7418
Ron Shields was among a group of five who went to see the Whimbrel at lunch in Harrier Meadow yesterday. Among his shots, he got the birds about to fly away, and then agin in the air. It never did land in Harrier again.This was reportedly the first Bergen County sighting since 1975.

(Thanks, Ron!)

IMG_7402

What We Might See in the Meadowlands in June

IMG_3347-1To get a feel for what we might see in the coming month, we thought we would look back at last year at this time.

Here are some highlights from June 2011:

June 2: Revamped Butterfly Garden

June 7: Glossy Ibis in Harrier Meadow

June 9: Three Active Osprey Nests

June 13: New Sensory Garden at DeKorte

June 14: Full Moon, Kearny Marsh

June 21: Kearny Marsh — Bitterns and Rails

June 30: Nesting Common Nighthawks