Since 1880, 2014 was warmer

Posted on by farlane

1880_Michigan_Wolverines_football_team

1880 Michigan Wolverines Football Team, photo courtesy Wikipedia

EarthSky’s Matt Daniel writes that NASA, NOAA, and Japan Meteorological Agency all report 2014 as Earth’s warmest year since modern-day record-keeping began in 1880.

Put in more tangible terms, since at least the days when University of Michigan footballers wore uniforms like this, there has not been a warmer year.

What’s more May, August, September, October and December of 2014 were ALL the warmest for that month since 1880! I’d like to suggest that global warming/climate change be shifted from a political issue to a survival issue. You are of course free to draw your own conclusions.

NASA has a snappy video that boils it down to a minute and a half.

Wikipedia says that these stylish gents played just one game, defeating the team from the University of Toronto, 13 to 6, at the Toronto Lacrosse Club. Michigan scored two touchdowns and one goal; Toronto scored three safety touchdowns.

Click the link for more and click the photo above to view it big as the big House.

MLK Say!

Posted on by farlane

MLK Say by Rudy Malmquist

MLK Say !, photo by Rudy Malmquist

“And so we must say, now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to transform this pending national elegy into a creative psalm of brotherhood. Now is the time to lift our nation.

…this social revolution taking place can be summarized in three little words. They are not big words. One does not need an extensive vocabulary to understand them. They are the words “all,” “here,” and “now.” We want all of our rights, we want them here, and we want them now.

…With this faith, we will be able to achieve this new day when all of God’s children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing with the Negroes in the spiritual of old: Free at last! Free at last! Thank God almighty, we are free at last!”

~ Dr. Martin Luther King in Detroit, June 23, 1963.

The words above are from Dr. Martin Luther King’s speech at Cobo Hall at the Great March on Detroit. The speech is regarded as the dress rehearsal for his famous I Have a Dream speech in Washington DC. Click to listen and read the text of the speech.

View Rudy’s photo background big and click for more of his graffiti photos.

More Martin Luther King on Michigan in Pictures.

I really encourage you to click through and listen. Dr. King was an incredible orator, and this was one of his very best speeches.

Costa’s Hummingbird #0001

Posted on by farlane

Costa's Hummingbird - Michigan

Costa’s Hummingbird, photo by Zak Pohlen

The other day I was browsing through the Sleeping Bear Birding Trail (SBBT) website and I came across a report that in November of 2014, the first Michigan sighting of a Costa’s Hummingbird was recorded. They write:

Michigan’s first Costa’s Hummingbird was found at the feeder of Jan and Ron Joslyn in Onekama just at the start of the SBBT off from M-22. The bird had been coming to the feeders for a couple weeks when the Joslyn’s called the Lake Bluff Audubon center concerned about the cold weather and the bird’s future.

I stopped at the Joslyn’s on Saturday November 1st and literally got weak in the knees when the bird appeared at the feeder and showed its purple gorget. I knew this was a first state record and with help from Caleb Putnam, Adam Byrne and Allen Chartier we were able to ID the bird.

Read on for more about the bird and also see this news report.

Where the story gets even cooler is that I went to Flickr and was able to find this photo of the bird, which Zak allowed me to feature. View it bigger and see more in his Birds of Michigan slideshow.

You can see more shots of the hummingbird on Flickr including several from Allen Chartier.

 

 

Home Improvement: Bald Eagle Edition

Posted on by farlane

Nest Builder by Kevin Povenz

Nest Building, photo by Kevin Povenz

Kevin took this shot of a bald eagle building a nest in late December near the Grand River in Ottawa County. The State of Michigan’s page on bald eagles says (in part):

During Michigan winters, bald eagles are seen throughout the state (almost all counties), while they nest mainly in the Upper Peninsula (especially the western portion) and the northern portion of the Lower Peninsula. These eagles don’t really migrate, they just move south enough to stay ahead of the ice and congregate near open water. Immature birds may move further south.

When bald eagles reach maturity (at four to five years of age), they select a mate, with whom they probably mate for life. In captivity, they have been known to live to 50 years, but in the wild, they probably don’t reach much more than 20 years of age.

The beginning of the breeding season, from mid-February to mid-March, consists of the establishment of a territory, nest building and mating displays. The mating “cartwheel” display begins high in the air with the two birds darting and diving at each other, until they lock talons and drop in a spinning free fall, until the last possible moment when they separate. The nest is usually located in the tallest tree in the area, often a white pine or dead snag. They are usually made of sticks with a lining of grass and moss. Nests may be added to each year until they reach enormous sizes, up to ten feet in depth and 20 feet across.

Read on for more and have a look at this encouraging chart of the steadily rising number of eagle nests in Michigan. Also check out this page of bald eagle sightings in Michigan for ideas of where to look near you!

View it bigger on Flickr, get more pics of these eagles at his Grand River North Ravines tag and see more in his Birds of Prey slideshow.

More eagles on Michigan in Pictures!

2015 North American International Auto Show

Posted on by farlane

Infiniti Q30 Concept Car

Infiniti Q30 Concept Car, photo by Rich

The 2015 North American International Auto Show starts this Saturday (Jan 17) and runs through next Sunday (Jan 25). Held at the Cobo Center in downtown Detroit, it remains the premier show for car enthusiasts. For a sneak peek, have a look at CNN’s highlights which appear to be split between “muscular” and “efficient” (unsurprising spoiler: muscular wins 70/30).

If you do attend, consider going on their photo day (Jan 20) for early access. In any case, if you are packing a camera  you might want to enter their 2015 Photo Contest which offers five different prizes of $200 each.

View Rich’s photo from last year’s show background big and see more in his Detroit – 2014 NAIAS slideshow.

More about NAIAS/Detroit Auto Show on Michigan in Pictures.

Icebreaking on the St Mary’s River is an international effort

Posted on by farlane

Icebreaking on the St Marys River

Icebreaking on the St Mary’s River, photo by U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Traverse City

Here’s an aerial shot of the 228-foot Canadian Coast Guard Ship (CCGS) SAMUEL RISLEY working in partnership with U.S. Coast Guard’s Sault Ste. Marie Sector on icebreaking operations in the St. Mary’s River last weekend. They write:

USCG Sector Sault Ste. Marie is also in high gear kicking off the 2015 Operation Taconite season, as ice continues to build daily across the Great Lakes. US Coast Guard and Canadian Coast Guard icebreakers are conducting around the clock icebreaking operations to assist commercial vessel traffic in the connecting waterways of Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, and Lake Huron.

Operation Taconite is the largest domestic icebreaking operation in the US. Over water shipping offers the only effective means of transporting the vast amounts of iron ore from the mines at the Head of the Lakes in Minnesota needed to meet the demands of steel mills in Lake Erie and Lake Michigan. Operation Taconite is primarily responsible for ensuring the successful transport of this cargo amid the harsh winter conditions of the northern Great Lakes.

Air Station MH-65s routinely fly ice reconnaissance flights in support of the operation

The photo was taken by the crew of one of the Traverse City Coast Guard Air Station’s Dolphin helicopters. View it background bigtacular and click through for a shot of the USCG Icebreaker Mackinaw working to keep this vital shipping channel open.

There’s more winter wallpaper and more ships on Michigan in Pictures.

Ice Caves Return to Lake Michigan

Posted on by farlane
Ice Caves Return

Ice Caves Return by Heather Higham

With a long run of temps in the single digits and teens and the mercury way down to -11 here in Traverse City this morning, I wasn’t all that surprise to learn that ice caves and other formations are starting to form on Lake Michigan.

Ice caves off the Leelanau Peninsula last winter created a sensation that drew thousands to the Leelanau Peninsula to view some fantastic formations. While they haven’t reached that level yet, the frigid temperatures from Polar Vortex II make it likely that photographers and lovers of the outdoors could be in for another fantastic & frozen feast in 2015!

Heather writes that while she didn’t go too far afield searching for ice caves, but there’s definitely some cool stuff to be discovered along the coast. She took this Esch Road Beach in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. View her photo bigger on her Snap Happy Gal Facebook page and see more in her ice formations slideshow at Flickr.

More ice caves on Michigan in Pictures.

 

Encased … and Encammed at St. Joseph Lighthouse

Posted on by farlane

Encased

Encased, photo by John Burzynski

While the St. Joseph Lighthouse just made an appearance in my 2014 roundup, sometimes you can’t have too much of a good thing. Speaking of good things, there’s a webcam at the St. Joseph lighthouse that allows you to look in on this incredible scene whenever you want!

View John’s photo bigger on Flickr and see more in his Great Lakes Lighthouses slideshow.

PS: Also a shout-out to Michigan in Pictures regular John McCormick whose 2013 pic of the St. Joseph Light has (according to USA Today) “gone viral” as the face of the Polar Vortex!

Lots more lighthouses on Michigan in Pictures.

When in Doubt, Jump off a Cliff

Posted on by farlane

When in Doubt Jump off a Cliff

When in Doubt, Jump off a Cliff, photo by shaleewanders

Through the magic of Twitter, I came across the website Shalee Wanders the other day. Created by Shalee Blackmer, it’s a really engaging site she created to inspire people (especially young people) to get out and enjoy traveling on a budget.

The post that drew me in was her Michigan Bucket List, a compilation with some photos of a lot of very fun things to do from to hiking the Porcupine Mountains to exploring the Detroit Packard Plant. Even better, there’s 250+ comments from people with more ideas for getting the most out of Michigan.

View Shalee’s photo from last summer near Marquette bigger and see more on her Instagram.

PS: I do feel that I need to point out that last summer Lake Superior was ice cold, making this leap especially impressive!

Stormin’ Norman

Posted on by farlane

Stormin Norman

Stormin’ Norman, photo by Fishtown Leland

Here’s a shot an iced-in fishing tug in the Leland Harbor. It was taken yesterday before the latest storm rolled through. Gonna be a while before fresh fish is available!!

View this photo by Fishtown Preservation background bigtacular, see more on their Facebook page and learn about this organization and their mission at fishtownmi.org.

There’s more boats and more winter wallpaper on Michigan in Pictures.

PS: If you want a look at (or share) pics of the storm impacts across Michigan, mLive is calling for folks to share their photos. Of course you can also share them on the Michigan in Pictures Facebook or by tweeting @michpics!