Tag: manitoba
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Alberta Bound
I’m back in Jasper for another summer! Mid-May had me Alberta bound. A friend of mine was also heading west from Ontario and had a car, so the two of us drove out together. We spent five days crossing the country – from Toronto and busy 400 series highway driving; to the northern Ontario mining…
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Return from Churchill
After a month in Canada’s north, I’m back home again. I took the train back from Churchill to Winnipeg (this time, the journey was far less eventful) and flew home from there. I’ve been home for a week now, enjoying temperatures in the positive degrees. Churchill was an experience unlike any I’ve had before. The…
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The Best Things in Life
The aurora & astronomy instructor at the CNSC often tells people who come up and are eager to see the northern lights: “The best things in life are worth waiting for.” When it comes to nature, is that ever true. One of the things I’ve learned throughout my travels is patience. Whether I’m waiting to…
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Out of This World
Last Saturday we had the most spectacular show I’ve seen yet in Churchill. It started as a pretty nice aurora. Early in the evening, we had a lovely green aurora over the CNSC building: The moon was out and shining so brightly you could see people’s faces clearly. I was out taking photos, and suddenly…
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Building for the Environment
I recently got to go on a “Green Building Tour” of the Churchill Northern Studies Centre, and learned a little bit about the history of the CNSC and the construction of the current building. Being uniquely located near both boreal forest and Arctic tundra habitats, Churchill attracts a large number of researchers, particularly in the…
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Hour of the Blue Snow
Another thing I’ve been having fun photographing up here is the “blue hour.” At lectures, I learned that the blue hour is the period of twilight in morning or evening, when the sun is at a significant depth below the horizon and residual, indirect sunlight takes on a predominantly blue shade. The blue hour always…
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Lights, Camera… Rockets?
About a week ago, there was a night of mild aurora (it was technically mild, but still beautiful!). A mild aurora can sometimes make for better photos, as it allows you to play around and be more creative with what’s in the foreground. That night I wandered around to the back of the building and…
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Churchill: Town Day
I joined the learning vacationers on their town day last week. Though I’ve been enjoying my time at the CNSC, it is very isolated. The CNSC is located 23km outside of the town of Churchill, and getting to town can be a bit of a mission. Somebody at the centre likened the experience of being…
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Focus on Stars
This past week and a bit, I’ve attended all of the learning vacation lectures at the CNSC and learned heaps about astronomy and the aurora. It’s something I’ve always wanted to know more about (I’ve always loved the stars), and now I know a little bit more about the science and physics behind it all.…
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Churchill’s Rocket Range
During my first week the centre offered a tour of the nearby rocket range to the learning vacationers. With my morning free of volunteer duties, I jumped in. It was a walking tour, which was appealing itself. At CNSC, you’re not normally allowed to walk outside, especially in bear season when polar bears are roaming…
THE WANDERING YEARS 