February 26 - Svalbard Global Seed Vault

A triumph in Global Environmental Conservation

Svalbard Global Seed Vault - Norway's Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg unlocked the vault today, and together with the African Nobel Peace Prize-winning environmentalist Wangari Maathai, he placed the first seeds in the vault. The facility will house seed samples of food plants from around the entire world.

Built inside a mountain in the Arctic region of Norway near the village of Longyearbyen on the island of Spitsbergen, the vault at its inception contains 268,000 distinct samples of seeds—each one originating from a different farm or field in the world. The opening of the seed vault is part of an unprecedented effort to protect the planet’s rapidly diminishing biodiversity.

4.5 Million seed samples from almost every country in the world have arrived in Svalbard before the opening. The Svalbard Global Seed Vault is funded and established entirely by Norway as a service to the world.

Thank you Norway!

February 21 - Lunar Eclipse

Lunar Eclipse - occurs whenever the Moon passes through some portion of the Earth’s shadow (the moon gets behind the earth or the sun, earth, and then the moon). This can occur only when the Sun, Earth and Moon are aligned with the Earth in the middle. Hence, the Moon is always full the night of a lunar eclipse. A total lunar eclipse will peak on February 21 at 3:26 UT; it can be seen from Europe, Africa and the Americas.

Saturn/Regulus/Moon - Saturn and the bright star Regulus will join the Moon during the night and into the morning of February 21.

February 14 - Valentine's Day!

Valentine's Day - The one day each year when we shower our love and affection on what we hold most dear in our hearts.

This year make a special point to show your love and respect for the Earth. Think green, and eco-friendly whenever possible. Recycle, reuse and respect plants and animals.

Look around today and see how much beauty and love you kind find in nature. You can find it just about anywhere if you really look for it!

Have a Happy Valentine's Day!

January 12 - Snow Flurry

Snow Flurry - A light snow falling for short durations. At this time of year as we approach the winter crown (last snowstorm of the season), we see more snow flurries which will eventually turn to sleet and freezing rain as the temperature slowly increases on our way to Spring.

February 7 - Great Horned Owl

Great Horned Owl - (Bubo virginianus) a large owl native to North and South America. Within their habitat the take up residence in trees of woodland forests, rainforests, swamps, mountains, deserts and even some urban areas. Their "horns" are not acutally horns or even ears, but simply tufts of feathers.

Great Horned Owls are some of the earliest-breeding birds in North America. They breed in late January or early February and are often heard calling to each other in the fall, starting in October. The incubation period for their eggs is approximately 33 days. Brooding is almost continuous until the offspring are about 2 weeks old, after which it decreases. Young owls move onto nearby branches at 6 weeks and start to fly about a week later.