Best wishes for Christmas and New Year

The adventure here is paused, but will soon restart. Until then, all the best for the holiday season and for 2010.

Really cold: Niagara Ice Falls

The last time Niagara Falls froze: March 1848.

Water flow was interrupted by accumulation of small icebergs in the upper section of the river; both falls froze quickly then.

In the lower section, an "ice bridge" linked both banks for miles; locals and tourists invaded this ice cap , taking photos, toboganning, selling drinks.

In fact, the tremendous flow of water remained under the ice cap, so this could break at any time and cause disaster.

Recent photos of Mars: oh! so remote

Some photos from Mars, thanks to

(clic for large view)










Dunes, winds, jet streams, canyons, craters, lots of colour and water underground. Only trees and Martians are missing.

Blow, blow, thou winter wind

Blow, blow, thou winter wind.
Thou art not so unkind
As man’s ingratitude (...)

from "As You Like It", William Shakespeare

As for winter winds, listen also to Sandy Denny, one of my favourite songwriters of the nineteen seventies/eighties :

Winter Winds- Sandy Denny

the long polar night

Since the last days of November , the arctic regions are in polar night season. They have to say goodbye to the sun. It will shine back again in about two months. Until then, welcome Polar Night!


Twilight is at noon, the sun trying to peak over the horizon - not succeeding though. But it never gets really dark. In fact there is a kind of permanent twilight, and in full moonlight , the "polar night" days are more enlightened than a dark night at the tropics.


Christmas night is all along the day...