what did I see at sunset today?

As I was driving west through Vestal, NY at sunset today I saw some object
in the western sky, maybe 30 degrees above the horizon. It looked like a
'^'. It didn't appear to be moving, nor did it appear to be contrails. But
it gradually faded to be visible as the sun set over a period of about 2
minutes or so. Did anyone else see it?

--
Regards,
-- Mark

Mark C. Lepkowski

http://www.mcltunes.com

Mark C. Lepkowski wrote:
As I was driving west through Vestal, NY at sunset today I saw some object
in the western sky, maybe 30 degrees above the horizon. It looked like a
'^'. It didn't appear to be moving, nor did it appear to be contrails. But
it gradually faded to be visible as the sun set over a period of about 2
minutes or so. Did anyone else see it?

Green flash, maybe? Saw a presentation recently at an astro club, and it
usually appears for a second or so...
--
Pat O'Connell
[note munged EMail address]
Take nothing but pictures, Leave nothing but footprints,
Kill nothing but vandals...

"Mark C. Lepkowski" wrote in
:

As I was driving west through Vestal, NY at sunset today I saw some
object in the western sky, maybe 30 degrees above the horizon. It
looked like a '^'. It didn't appear to be moving, nor did it appear
to be contrails. But it gradually faded to be visible as the sun set
over a period of about 2 minutes or so. Did anyone else see it?


Most likely Venus, distorted by high clouds or haze.

Maybe the Good Year blimp.

JS

"Mark C. Lepkowski" wrote in message
...
As I was driving west through Vestal, NY at sunset today I saw some object
in the western sky, maybe 30 degrees above the horizon. It looked like a
'^'. It didn't appear to be moving, nor did it appear to be contrails.
But
it gradually faded to be visible as the sun set over a period of about 2
minutes or so. Did anyone else see it?

--
Regards,
-- Mark

Mark C. Lepkowski

http://www.mcltunes.com

Directly above the suns position about 25-30 degrees? Bright compared to
the surrounding sky with no distinct edges?

Might have been a Sun Pillar. They generally only last several minutes,
especially if your moving in a car, and I believe only appear at
sunrise/sunset.

Good day,
Francis Marion

Pat O'Connell wrote:
Green flash, maybe? Saw a presentation recently at an astro club, and it
usually appears for a second or so...

Certainly not 30 degrees above the horizon...


--
Greg Crinklaw
Astronomical Software Developer
Cloudcroft, New Mexico, USA (33N, 106W, 2700m)

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"Greg Crinklaw" wrote in message
...
Pat O'Connell wrote:
Green flash, maybe? Saw a presentation recently at an astro club, and it
usually appears for a second or so...

Certainly not 30 degrees above the horizon...

I've never seen a green flash, but from the descriptions I've heard they
require nearly perfect atmospheric conditions, are on the horizon, colored
green, and very short lived (1-second). What I saw was an upside-down-v
shaped object that was initially bright white, but then turned pink as it
faded.

"donutbandit" wrote in message
...
Most likely Venus, distorted by high clouds or haze.

I've been following Venus over the past month or so, so I don't think that
was it.

"Szaki" wrote in message
news:_9C0c.428723$I06.4884882@attbi_s01...
Maybe the Good Year blimp.

I suppose that might be possible. The angle was acute, maybe 20-30 degrees,
and the sides appeared straight.

My first thought was that I was looking at a very thin crescent moon, but
since it's waxing gibbous I ruled that out.

"Francis Marion" wrote in message
news:m8K0c.91878$Xp.418381@attbi_s54...
Directly above the suns position about 25-30 degrees? Bright compared to
the surrounding sky with no distinct edges?

There were distinctly lined edges maybe half the diameter of the moon.

Might have been a Sun Pillar.

I doubt it (although I did see a nice sun pillar last Thursday or Friday.
It extended vertically from the horizon where the sun was setting up about
30 degrees or so like the Sun was holding up a light saber...