· Get a Cloudy Nights T-Shirt · Submit a Review / Article Click here if you are having trouble logging into the forums Privacy Policy | Please read our Terms of Service | Signup and Troubleshooting FAQ | Problems? PM a Red or a Green Gu… uh, User You are not logged in. [Login] Entrance · Main Index · Search · New user · Who's Online FAQ · Calendar General Astronomy >> General Observing and Astronomy Previous   Index   Next   Threaded   Pages: 1 astrologia journeyman Reged: 04/01/12 Red Sirius       #5153147 - 04/02/12 12:21 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   A couple nights ago on March 31st, (very) roughly 9:00 PM EST in central Florida I saw something weird. I was on the computer and my (wired) smoke detector went off for 5 seconds, which has never happened before. I just thought it to be technology acting up because of the Mercury retrograde, but nevertheless I briefly walked around the house to make sure nothing was smoking, in addition to feeling compelled to check outside the house. That also reminded me to go get the mail, so I headed out my front door facing south and looked up like I always do. When looking up I saw a big flaring red object a little west of south. I got a weird feeling because at first I didn't know what it was, but as I paused and looked at it, it became clear that it was some kind of body, very red and flaring, not really "twinkling." I continued on to get the mail looking up all about and at some point it stopped sticking out so much in the sky and I headed back inside. After learning that bugs or CB radios in the area, etc., are some things that can cause smoke detectors to go off, I learned through Stellarium that the star I had seen was Sirius. After going back outside in the backyard to check things out everything seemed to be "normal," nothing stood out other than Venus in the west. I searched online the terms "sirius red" and came across the whole controversy and all of the mystery theories relating to Sirius, and the Dogon people, etc. I came across the thread here, so I felt compelled to post here as well: http://www.cloudynights.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php/Cat/0/Number/3401956/page/0/view/collapsed/sb/5/o/all/fpart/all/vc/1 Also, I don't feel too bad talking about my experience, because hey, at least one other guy in the world experienced something similar, at the bottom of the page here: http://www.daviddarling.info/encyclopedia/S/Siriusred.html Anyone have any theories? Post Extras:       rookie Good Night Nurse Reged: 01/14/06 Loc: St. Petersburg, FL Re: Red Sirius [Re: astrologia]       #5153836 - 04/02/12 08:42 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Hmmm, April Fools The question is why Sirius would have been described as red by the ancients? No one knows. However, if you were outside March 31,2012, Sirius would appear blazing white and not red. OTOH, Mars is up high in the sky and very red to the naked eye. Other than that, you probably saw an airplane. Post Extras:       astrologia journeyman Reged: 04/01/12 Re: Red Sirius [Re: rookie]       #5153917 - 04/02/12 10:15 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   I know, how convenient right? FWIW, the above happened as I said it. Alternatively, what would be the theory then behind the experience of "Cambridge University researcher Pavlo Tanasyuk," mentioned in the 2nd link above? Post Extras:       Ed D Carpal Tunnel Reged: 04/30/10 Loc: Sunny South Florida Re: Red Sirius [Re: astrologia]       #5154277 - 04/03/12 08:17 AM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   If it were South Florida I would say it was swamp gas, which is also notorious for setting off smoke detectors. Thanks for the links to some interesting reading. Ed D Post Extras:       astrologia journeyman Reged: 04/01/12 Re: Red Sirius [Re: Ed D]       #5154745 - 04/03/12 01:34 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   I was on a webpage that linked to this site, I went to it and opened up a thread and it had a link in it to this thread: http://www.godlikeproductions.com/forum1/message1826312/pg1 Seems like I'm not the only one who has seen something recently. I briefly went out the last couple of nights but didn't notice anything other than a really bright Venus. All I know is that when I saw it it stuck out like a sore thumb, probably even in contention with Venus, perhaps more so because it was just so big and just so red. Post Extras:       spencerj scholastic sledgehammer Reged: 11/17/04 Loc: Londonderry, NH Re: Red Sirius [Re: astrologia]       #5154820 - 04/03/12 02:35 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Maybe it is living under the jet stream all these years, but it is not that uncommon to see a bright star that is low in the sky appear to be flashing or flaring. Sirius and Vega are two that really stand out. Under the right conditions, they can almost appear to be flashing colors--red being the most prominent. Again, this only occurs when the star is low in the sky. When Vega or Sirius are higher in the sky, they appear their normal whitish blue. Post Extras:       Pages: 1 Previous   Index   Next   Threaded   Extra information 10 registered and 11 anonymous users are browsing this forum. 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