Tag Archives: Telescopes

The Numbers Game #116

12 Replies
Telescopes seen from the trail to Mauna Kea summit in Hawaii
Telescopes on Mauna Kea seen from the trail to the summit.

The idea of The Numbers Game is to enter a number into the search bar of your computer and then post a selection of the photos that turn up. This week’s number is 238. Captions are on the photos. You can see more responses here.

Maui Pau rider decorations
A rider in the Kamehameha Day parade at Kapaau.
People descend to the green sand beach near South Point in Hawaii
People descending to the green sand beach near South Point.
A chub cleans itself against a rock
Chubs cleaning themselves by rubbing against a rock.
A Konane game board at Lapakahi, Hawaii
A Kōnane game board at Lapakahi.
Morning dew on grass in Hawaii
Morning dew.
The Kalahikiola Congregational Church in Kapaau, Hawaii
Kalāhikiola Congregational Church near Kapaau.

The Numbers Game #113

Telescopes in the Smithsonian Submillimeter Array on Mauna Kea and what they’re thinking.

The idea of The Numbers Game is to enter a number into the search bar of your computer and then post a selection of the photos that turn up. This week’s number is 235. Captions are on the photos. You can see more responses here.

A Gold Dust Day Gecko in the coin return slot of a Pepsi machine in Hawaii
A Gold Dust Day Gecko checking things out from the coin return slot.
A Footstool Palm.
Ants feed around a blob of fallen jam
These ants quickly found a blob of dropped jam.
A Bluefin Trevally catches the light.
A praying mantis on a window in Hawaii
A praying mantis on glass.
A covered lanai in Hawaii
The covered lanai next door. The place has supposedly sold, but nothing has changed there yet.

The Numbers Game #101

It’s the time of year when big northwest swells start to hit the islands. This one is from a few years back.

The idea of The Numbers Game is to enter a number into the search bar of your computer and then post a selection of the photos that turn up. This week’s number is 223. Captions are on the photos. You can see more responses here.

A cigar wrasse swims among a shoal of convict tang.
A Cigar Wrasse not blending in with some Convict Tangs.
Boats anchored off the Kohala coast on a calm day.
First flight of the day arrives at Kona Airport.
Mauna Kea’s telescopes at sunrise.
Yes, it’s getting to be that time of year!
A plane tied down at Upolu Airport with Maui in the background.

Black and white, some in color

Black and white cars in Kailua Kona in Hawaii
I was photographing the building, but realized later that all the vehicles were white except for the one black one. What are the chances?

This week’s Sunday Stills color challenge theme is ‘Black (and/or) Black-and-White.’ See more responses here.

Black straw-filled tubes in Hawaii
A writhing mass of straw-filled sausages, used to prevent runoff from a building site.
Black and white image of clouds over Upolu Airport in Hawaii
Clouds over Upolu Airport.
Black and white image of a large tree in Hawaii
Tree branches towering overhead.
Tires stacked in a shipping container in Hawaii
Tires in a shipping container.
Black and white image of a fan in Hawaii
A building fan.
Black and white image of the Keck telescopes on Mauna Kea in Hawaii
The Keck telescopes on Mauna Kea.

It’s frosty up there

A view of telescopes on Mauna Kea, Hawaii

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Frosty.’ See more responses here.

I don’t see a lot of frost here in Hawaii, but the top of Mauna Kea is almost always cold. When I was up there last year, there was some snow on the ground and the freezing wind was whipping.

A view of Mauna Kea from the Waimea saddle in Hawaii

It’s much more comfortable to view the chilly scene from the warmth and comfort of the lowlands. Zooming in on my camera is close enough to the real thing!

A view of telescopes on Mauna Kea, Hawaii

Now you see it …

The exterior of the Caltech Submilimeter Observatory before it was decommissioned and removed from Mauna Kea, Hawaii

The exterior of the Caltech Submilimeter Observatory atop Mauna Kea is chock full of triangles, squares, hexagons, curves, lines, etc. You could check it out, except that it’s invisible! Well, it is now, because it was decommissioned in 2015, and last year was dismantled and removed.

Posted for Becky’s Squares: Geometric. See more responses here.

The Numbers Game #49

Kiawe trees and Muana Kea telescopes silhouetted against an early morning sky
A view of telescopes on Mauna Kea from Mahukona.

The idea of The Numbers Game is to enter a number into the search bar of your computer and then post a selection of the photos that turn up. This week’s number is 170. Captions are on the photos. You can see more responses here.

A lion statue with a air of sunglasses
A cool lion at The Hilton.
A firefighting helicopter drops water on a brush fire in Hawaii
A fire helicopter dropping water on a brush fire hot spot.
Three cats resting in Hawaii
Hard working cats!
A Sonoran Carpenter Bee clambers through agave attenuata flowers
A Sonoran Carpenter Bee on an Agave Attenuata.
A couple performs on the beach at sunset in Hawaii
As The Pretenders once sang, ‘I got to have some of your attention.’
The beach at ʻAnaehoʻomalu Bay in Hawaii
ʻAnaehoʻomalu Bay beach, more commonly known as A Bay.

Can you see it?

The Caltech Submilimeter Observatory on Mauna Kea, Hawaii, shortly before the dome was removed.

A few weeks ago, I was up at the summit of Mauna Kea with my visiting brother. I took a lot of photos up there including this one of the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory. I’ve always liked this observatory as it’s cute and shiny and has all kinds of different shapes going on.

One other thing it has, is disappeared. A couple of weeks after my visit, the dome was removed, part of a decommissioning process that’s been going on for a while now. Once the pad and underground utilities have been taken out, the site will be restored to its natural state.

For more information on this project see here and here.