9:33 PM
| Sunrise at | 8:33 AM | in direction | 115° | East-southeast |  |
| Sunset at | 5:37 PM | in direction | 246° | West-southwest |  |
In talking about life here, it is never possible to get too far away from the shifts in daylight. So while my chief topic is life around campus as I saw it today, I also am including the inevitable discussion of how rapidly daylight versus dark has changed in February.
Did you notice that we have over 9 hours of daylight today? If you live more southerly, you probably think - so what? If you were paying attention to the time change posts I've been putting up, though, you might remember that it was not that long ago that the sunlight reflected a change from 7 hours x minutes to over 8 hours. That was 9 days ago in fact. Yep, 11 February, we posted our first 8 hour day. Then when you add the following information:
| Civil twilight | begins at | 7:42 AM, | ends at | 6:29 PM |
It's clear that we have plenty of light now - not that different from:
| Civil twilight | begins at | 7:06 AM, | ends at | 6:35 PM |
Which is the twilight times posted for Calgary, Alberta, Canada. A city that is considerably further south than we are.
I walked near close to noon today. Although the temperature reading at the Fairbanks International was -8F when I came in at 9:00, it reached 27F on upper campus by 15:00. I hardly noticed the temperature while walking today, nor did anyone around me that I could see. No wind blew and the sun reflected off the snow that is, of course, still in evidence everywhere in Fairbanks despite the warmer days. My overall sense was of brightness and the people around me were relaxed as they took in the day's sun rays.
The warm weather prompted maintenance workers to begin shoveling off the concrete ledges that had been snowbound since Fall semester. Many chose to ride bikes to campus today, while some will have to wait until spring when the snow melts from around the bike racks. Students and staff strolled between classes lightly dressed, often bare headed and without gloves.
UAF Alumni Association has an unusual way of inviting alumni back to campus. They welcome back graduates in 25 year intervals and neither pertain much to the current year. As you can see by the banner, 1961 and 1986 are the celebratory years for 2011/2012. Signers Hall is so named because the Alaska State Constitution was signed in the building in 1956. Civil Engineering students have had us all wondering if they were actually going to put ice on the complex structure they built to support it. As it has slowly taken shape, it appears they are constructing a traditional arch made of blocks of ice. As you can see by the photo, it appears the keystone is all that needs to be placed. Hopefully they will get it done before break-up when everything melts!
On my way to the Great Hall that connects art, theatre, music and library buildings, I passed the Office of Sustainability. The ability to sustain our lives without outside support (and minimize our impact on our environment upon which we rely) is a focus of many within Fairbanks North Star Borough. Many of these recyclables will be raw materials for local vendors. Indoors, the noon hour yoga class was being held in the Great Hall. At the Wood Center, folks met in study groups in the couch and chair grouping or at tables scattered through out. Others simply focused on their meal while the chief grill cook kept everyone happy. It's not so surprising to see someone appear with hockey practice stick in hand, although fringed wool coat and well-worn cowboy hat are unusual for "these parts".
All in all, not bad for a Monday.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thanks for taking time to comment.