Earth and Space News: December 2016

Saturday, December 31, 2016

New Poinsettia Plant Named 'Snowcap' Has Creamy White Flower Bracts

Summary: A new poinsettia plant named 'Snowcap,' cultivated by Ecke Ranch's chief hydridizer, Franz Fruehwirth, has creamy white flower bracts.

side view of poinsettia 'Snowcap' in images included in Franz Fruehwirth's patent application, filed Jan. 7, 1998, with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO): color scans via Plant Patents Image Database, Engineering & Physical Science Library (USPTO designation: College Park Patent & Trademark Resource Center), University of Maryland, CC BY 2.0, via University of Maryland's Plant Patents Image Database @ http://www.lib.umd.edu/plantpatents/binaries/11100/pp11100.pdf

A new poinsettia named 'Snowcap,' a self-branching sport cultivated by Ecke Ranch's chief hybridizer, Franz Fruehwirth, has creamy white flower bracts framed by medium dark green leaves.

On Oct. 19, 1999, Fruehwirth filed an application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office for a patent for his new poinsettia named 'Snowcap.' He listed Paul Ecke Ranch Inc. in Encinitas, southern California, as assignee. Howard J. Locker reviewed the application as primary examiner. Kent L. Bell served as assistant examiner. On Oct. 19, 1999, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office assigned plant patent number 11,100 to a new poinsettia named 'Snowcap.'

'Snowcap' originated as naturally occurring genetic mutation, known as a sport, of a Euphorbia pulcherrima seedling. Designated as “L-16,” the seedling is a proprietary, unpatented plant in an Ecke Ranch greenhouse in Encinitas.

Fruehwirth selected 'Snowcap' for its creamy white flower bracts and medium dark green leaves. Other distinctive traits capturing Fruehwirth's attention included large flower clusters, self branching and a nine-week flowering response time.

Vegetative propagation via stem cuttings demonstrated the firm retention and true reproduction of the sport's distinctive traits over successive generations.

The inventor's descriptions in his application concern flowering poinsettias in December 1996. Plants were grown as one branch plant in a pot with a diameter of 14 centimeters (5.51 inches) and a height of 11 centimeters (4.33 inches). The short- to medium-sized, potted shrub reached an overall height of 41 centimeters (16.14 inches). Its spread, or overall width, measured 26 centimeters (10.236 inches).

Axillary branches do not require pinching in order to develop a terminal inflorescence. Fruehwirth, however, recommends pinching to encourage fast, uniform development of axillary branches.

Flowering occurs in about nine weeks as a response to continuous long night conditions. The desirable night temperature range is about 16 to 18 degrees Celsius (60.8 to 64.4 degrees Fahrenheit).

Medium-sized leaves have typical lengths of 14 centimeters (5.51 inches). The blade width typically measures 9 centimeters (3.54 inches).

Leaf shape is generally ovate, or egg-shaped. Leaf blade margins may be lobed with one indentation on each side.

Leaves display uniform medium dark greenness. Upper surfaces are a dark medium green that is darker than dark green (Royal Horticultural Society color chart color 137A; nearly RHS 147A dark green). Lower surfaces have a greenness that nears dark green (RHS 147A).

'Snowcap' poinsettia's foliage lasts very well. The low light intensities that characterize consumers' homes do not interfere with leaf retention.

Usually, 20 to 22 variously-sized bracts subtend, or underlie, 'Snowcap' poinsettia's cuplike floral heads, known as cyathia (Ancient Greek: κύαθος. kyathos, "drinking cup"). Primary bracts typically have lengths of 12 to 13 centimeters (4.72 to 5.11 inches) and widths of 7 to 8 centimeters (2.75 to 3.14 inches).

Primary bracts have ovate shapes, with margins that are entire, or smooth and untoothed. The variously sized secondary bracts have broadly elliptical shapes.

Fruehwirth finds that 'Snowcap' poinsettia's creamy white flower bracts are far whiter than most “white” commercial poinsettias. Upper surfaces are whiter than yellow green (RHS 2D). The whiteness of lower surfaces nears yellow green (RHS 2D). Veins are greenish.

At full bloom, 'Snowcap' poinsettia bears about 21 to 24 cyathia per inflorescence. Cyathia are green-colored. The distal end, farthest from the point of attachment, has creamy white fringes. Protruding from the side of each cyathium are one or two yellow nectar cups. Nectar exudate, or secretion, is abundant.

'Snowcap' poinsettia exhibits a better than average retention of cyathia. Cyathia may last three weeks beyond full floral maturity.

The takeaway for the poinsettia plant named 'Snowcap' that has creamy white flower bracts framed by medium dark green leaves is the sport's desirable self branching, good flowering response time, attractive color contrasts and good bract, cyathia and leaf retention.

A poinsettia plant named 'Snowcap' lives up to its desirable description as a cap of creamy white bracts, whiter than most commercial “white” poinsettias, dramatized by medium dark green leaves and desirable branching.

top view of poinsettia 'Snowcap' in images included in Franz Fruehwirth's patent application, filed Jan. 7, 1998, with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO): color scans via Plant Patents Image Database, Engineering & Physical Science Library (USPTO designation: College Park Patent & Trademark Resource Center), University of Maryland, CC BY 2.0, via University of Maryland's Plant Patents Image Database @ http://www.lib.umd.edu/plantpatents/binaries/11100/pp11100.pdf

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants. “Document TGP/14: Glossary of Technical, Botanical and Statistical Terms Used in UPOV Documents. Section 2: Botanical Terms: Subsection 3: Color: (2): Color Names for the RHS Colour Chart.” UPOV (Union Internationale Pour la Protection des Obtentions Végétales). Dec. 9, 2006.
Available @ http://www.upov.int/edocs/mdocs/upov/en/tc_edc/2007/tgp_14_draft_1_section_2_3_2.pdf

Marriner, Derdriu. “American Green Poinsettia Gardens for America's Toothed Spurge.” Earth and Space News. Sunday, Dec. 4, 2016.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/12/american-green-poinsettia-gardens-for.html

Marriner, Derdriu. “American Wild Poinsettia Gardens for America's Other Poinsettia.” Earth and Space News. Saturday, Dec. 3, 2016.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/12/american-wild-poinsettia-gardens-for.html

Marriner, Derdriu. “From Unnamed Patented Poinsettia to 'Flaming Sphere' to 'Winter Rose'™.” Earth and Space News. Saturday, Dec. 24, 2016.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/12/from-unnamed-patented-poinsettia-to.html

Marriner, Derdriu. “Poinsettia '3-91' With Blushed Red Bracts Is Sold as Monet Twilight™.” Earth and Space News. Sunday, Dec. 18, 2016.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/12/poinsettia-3-91-with-blushed-red-bracts.html

Marriner, Derdriu. “Poinsettia 'Ice Punch' Has Cherry Red and Pink Bicolored Flower Bracts.” Earth and Space News. Saturday, Dec. 10, 2016.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/12/poinsettia-ice-punch-has-cherry-red-and.html

“Mutations: Plant.” Royal Horticultural Society > Advice.
Available @ https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=259

“Poinsettia Named Angelika.” United States Patent and Trademark Office > Program in Word (PIW). June 11, 1985.
Available @ http://pdfpiw.uspto.gov/.piw?PageNum=0&docid=PP005492

“Poinsettia Plant Named 'Snowcap.'” United States Patent and Trademark Office > Program in Word (PIW). Oct. 19, 1999.
Available @ http://pdfpiw.uspto.gov/.piw?PageNum=0&docid=PP011100

“Poinsettia V-14.” United States Patent and Trademark Office > Program in Word (PIW). Feb. 20, 1979.
Available @ http://pdfpiw.uspto.gov/.piw?PageNum=0&docid=PP004384

“PP11100 Poinsettia Plant Named 'Snowcap.'” University of Maryland Plant Patent Image Database.
Available @ http://www.lib.umd.edu/plantpatents/id/7085

Friday, December 30, 2016

Australia's Red Kangaroo Natural History Illustrations

Summary: Blue-gray female and red-brown male red kangaroo natural history illustrations get arid and flat, grassy, shrubby, woody semi-arid homelands.

red kangaroo (Macropus rufus); Kilcowra Station, South West Queensland, northeastern Australia; June 1, 2015: Dan Armbrust, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr

Red kangaroo natural history illustrations attest to the apposable aspects of archetypical behaviors, colors, habitats and sizes that assemble red kangaroos into their own species within insular and mainland Australia's Macropus kangaroo genus.

Red kangaroos bear the additional common names blue fliers for female body colors and plains and red plains kangaroos for one of the species' biogeographical niches. They carry the scientific name Macropus rufus ("big-footed red [kangaroo]") for marsupial ([maternal] pouch-bearing) membership in the Macropodidae kangaroo, pademelon, quokka, tree-kangaroo, wallaby and wallaroo family. Descriptions in 1822 by Anselme Gaëtan Desmarest (March 6, 1784-June 4, 1838), zoology professor at l'École vétérinaire d'Alfort ("[National] Veterinary School of Alfort"), dominate scientific designations.

Red kangaroo natural history illustrations sometimes elaborate extensive habitat niches, almost continent-wide, that exclude the Commonwealth of Australia's coastal and subcoastal eastern, northern and southern mainland.

Physically and sexually mature blue flier, plains, red and red plains kangaroos fit into the Land Down Under's kangaroo genus-typical, summertime breeding season December through February.

Sixteen-year captive and 20- to 30-year wild red kangaroo life expectancies garner sexual maturity for females as 14- to 20-month-olds and males as 20- to 24-month-olds. They herald one 32- to 34-day gestated, thin-shelled, white egg at a time and one newborn's three-minute hike from the birthing canal to the maternal pouch. The blind, hairless, pink, scent-impelled, 0.03-ounce (0.75-gram), 0.79-inch- (2-centimeter-) long, 0.29-inch- (0.7-centimeter-) wide newborn investigates pouch life with developed digits, forelimbs, jaw muscles, nostrils and tongues.

Red kangaroo natural history illustrations sometimes juxtapose life cycle stages since females sometimes juggle simultaneously one egg, one newborn, one dependent joey and one weaned joey.

Newborns to 59-day-olds and 150- to 190- and 190- to 235-day-old joeys respectively keep to low-fat milk, to higher-fat milk and to greens and high-fat milk.

Embryonic diapause temporarily locks each egg at a 100-cell mass until drought lessens, famine lets up or the in-pouch joey leaves as a 190- to 235-day-old. Joeys move temporarily in and out of maternal pouches as 190- to 235-day-olds and permanently out, but at-foot, as 235- to 365-day-olds, until independent, weaned year-olds. Bassia diacantha (gray copperburr) and Maireana pyramidata (shrubby bluebush) and Enneapogon avenaceus (bottle-washer) and Eragrostis setifolia (narrow-leaf never-fall) respectively number among red kangaroo-friendly chenopods and grasses.

Red kangaroo natural history illustrations offer informational images of 6-foot- (1.83-meter-) high jumps, 25-foot (7.62-meter-) long leaps and 35-mile (56.33-kilometer) hourly speeds toward grazing, shaded grounds.

Red kangaroos pursue respectively semi-solitary, small-group life cycles as boomers (males) and, with offspring, fliers (females) near mulga (Acacia aneura) and saltbushes (Atriplex and Chenopodium spp).

Females queue 33.47- to 41.34-inch (85- to 105-centimeter) head-body lengths, 25.59- to 33.47-inch (65- to 85-centimeter) tail lengths and 44.09- to 88.19-pound (20- to 40-kilogram) weights. Males reveal 51.18- to 62.99-inch (130- to 160-centimeter) head-body lengths, 39.37- to 47.24-inch (100- to 120-centimeter) tail lengths and 88- to 198.42-pound (40- to 90-kilogram) weights. Mature females and males show black-and-white muzzles, broad-, white-striped cheeks, dark, five-clawed, five-toed fore-paws and four-clawed, four-toed hind-feet, dusky naked nosetips, gray-white undersides and pale-tipped tails.

Red kangaroo natural history illustrations tally agroindustry-, climate change-, hunt-thwarted blue-gray and red-brown populations that the International Union for Conservation of Nature tags as "least concern."

head closeup of red kangaroo (Macropus rufus) by English artist and ornithologist John Gould (Sept. 14, 1804-Feb. 3, 1881); H.C. (Henry Constantine) Richter lithographer, (Charles Joseph) Hullmandel and (Joseph Fowell) Walton printers: J. Gould's Mammals of Australia (1863), vol. II, Plate 6 (opposite page 9): Public Domain via Internet Archive

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

red kangaroo (Macropus rufus); Kilcowra Station, South West Queensland, northeastern Australia; June 1, 2015: Dan Armbrust, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr @ https://www.flickr.com/photos/77486088@N06/20423762350/

Desm. (Desmarest, Anselme Gaëtan). 1817. "Second espèce. -- Kanguroo brun enfumé, Kangurus fuliginosus." Nouveau Dictionnaire d'Histoire Naturelle, Appliquée aux Arts, à l'Agriculture, à l'Économie Rurale et Domestique, à la Médecine, etc. Tome XVII: 35-36, Plate XXII. Paris, France: Chez Deterville, MDCCCXVII.
Available via Biodiversity Heritage Library @ https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/18054378

Desmarest, A. G. (Anselme Gaëtan). 1822. "841. (414 bis.) Kanguroo roux, Kangurus rufus." Mammalogie, ou, Description des Espèces de Mammifères. Seconde Partie, Contenant les Ordres des Rongeurs, des Édentés, des Pachydermes, des Ruminants et des Cétacés. Supplément: 540-541. Paris, France: Chez Mme Veuve Agasse, 1822.
Available via Biodiversity Heritage Library @ https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/39521985

Gould, John. September 1842. "Description of Two New Species of Kangaroos From Western Australia: Macropus ocydromus." The Annals and Magazine of Natural History, vol. X: 1-2. London, England: R. and J.E. Taylor.
Available via Biodiversity Heritage Library @ https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/2324037

Gould, John. 1863. "Macropus Ocydromus. West-Australian Great Kangaroo." The Mammals of Australia, vol. II: pages 6-7, Plates 3-4. London, England: Printed for The Author by Taylor and Francis.
Available via Biodiversity Heritage Library @ https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/49740661
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/stream/mammalsAustrali2Goul#page/5/mode/1up

Gould, John. 1863. "Osphranter Rufus. Great Red Kangaroo." The Mammals of Australia, vol. II: pages 9-11, Plates 6-7. London, England: Printed for The Author by Taylor and Francis.
Available via Biodiversity Heritage Library @ https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/49740665
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/stream/mammalsAustrali2Goul#page/6/mode/1up

Iredale, T. (Tom); and E. (Ellis) Le G. Troughton. 1934. "A Check-List of the Mammals Recorded From Australia." Australian Museum Memoir, vol. 6 (May 4, 1934): 1-122. Sydney, Australia: The Trustees of the Australian Museum.
Available @ https://australianmuseum.net.au/uploads/journals/17234/516_complete.pdf
Available via Biodiversity Heritage Library @ https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/47102257

Lundie-Jenkins, Geoff. "Wallabies and Kangaroos." In: Michael Hutchins, Devra G. Kleiman, Valerius Geist and Melissa C. McDade, eds. Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia. Second edition. Volume 13, Mammals II: 83-103. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale Group, 2003.

Marriner, Derdriu. 25 November 2016. "Australia's Antelope Kangaroo Natural History Illustrations." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/11/australias-tropical-antelope-kangaroo.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 2 December 2016. "Australia's Eastern Gray Kangaroo Natural History Illustrations." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/12/australias-eastern-gray-kangaroo.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 9 December 2016. "Tasmanian Eastern Gray Forester Kangaroo Natural History Illustrations." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/12/tasmanian-eastern-gray-forester.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 16 December 2016. "Australia's Western Gray Kangaroo Natural History Illustrations." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/12/australias-western-gray-kangaroo.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 23 December 2016. "Kangaroo Island Western Gray Kangaroo Natural History Illustrations." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/12/kangaroo-island-western-gray-kangaroo.html

Wednesday, December 28, 2016

Two Weeks After 2016 December Solstice Earth Reaches 2017 Perihelion

Summary: On Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2017, two weeks after the 2016 December solstice, Earth reaches 2017 perihelion, Earth’s closest orbital point from the sun.

In the 21st century, Earth reaches annual perihelion, or maximum closeness, around Jan. 2 to 5; New Year Cartoons/Astronomy Humor by Sara Zimmerman, cartoonist and creator of webcomics Unearthed Comics: Unearthed Comics @Unearthed Comics via Facebook Jan. 2, 2015

At 14:18 Coordinated Universal Time (9:18 a.m. Eastern Standard Time), Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2017, two weeks after the 2016 December solstice, Earth reaches 2017 perihelion, the closest center-to-center orbital point with the sun.

The 2016 December solstice took place Wednesday, Dec. 21, at 10:44 UTC (5:44 a.m. EST). The December solstice marks Earth’s axial tilt, at the North Pole, away from the sun and astronomically opens northern winter and southern summer.

In the table of 21st century perihelion and aphelion calculations on his Astro Pixels website, retired NASA astrophysicist Fred Espenak lists Earth’s 2017 perihelic distance at 0.9833094 AU (147,100,993 kilometers). Stavanger, southwestern Norway-based website Time And Date’s conversion of AU to miles gives a 2017 perihelic distance of 91,404,322 miles.

Astronomers calculate distances between Earth and sun in astronomical units (AU). An astronomical unit represents the mean distance between Earth and sun. In 2012, the International Astronomical Union set the value of 1 AU at 149,597,870,700 meters (149,597,870.70 kilometers; roughly 92,955,807 miles).

Earth’s orbit does not trace a perfect circle, in which all points are equidistant from the sun in the center. Eccentricity, or deviation, in Earth’s orbit around the sun drive variations in annual points of closest distance, or perihelion, and farthest distance, or aphelion. Perihelic distances vary annually. The moon exerts an important influence on Earth’s orbit around the sun.

An eccentricity of zero denotes a perfectly circular orbit. Numbers higher than zero indicate somewhat elliptical orbits. Espenak gives a mean eccentricity of 0.0167 for Earth’s orbit.

Espenak gives a mean perihelic value of 0.9832899 AU (147,098,074 kilometers) for annual variations in Earth’s closest center-to-center distances from the sun. January 2017’s perihelion exceeds the mean perihelic value by 2,919 kilometers.

January 2017’s perihelion bests the previous year’s closeness by 822 kilometers. On Jan. 2, 2016, perihelion logged 0.9833039 AU (147,100,171 kilometers) at 22:49 UTC (5:49 p.m. EST). Time And Date’s conversion expresses 2016 perihelion as 91,403,812 miles. January 2016’s perihelion exceeded the mean perihelic value of 0.9832899 AU (147,098,074 kilometers) by 2,097 kilometers.

January 2017’s perihelion also will best 2018’s perihelion by 3,764 kilometers. On Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2018, perihelion at 05:35 UTC (12:35 a.m. EST) measures 0.9832843 AU (147,097,229 kilometers). Time And Date converts 2018 perihelion to 91,401,983 miles. January 2018’s perihelion is 845 kilometers less than the mean perihelic value of 0.9832899 AU (147,098,074 kilometers).

The 21st century’s first perihelion happened Jan. 4, 2001, at 8:52 UTC (3:52 a.m. EST). The distance of 0.9832860 AU (roughly 147,097,492 kilometers) was 582 kilometers less than the mean perihelic value of 0.9832899 AU (147,098,074 kilometers).

The 21st century’s last perihelion is timed for 13:54 UTC (8:54 a.m. EST), Jan. 3, 2100. The distance of 0.9833398 AU (roughly 147,105,534 kilometers) will exceed the mean perihelic value of 0.9832899 AU (147,098,074 kilometers) by 7,460 kilometers.

Fred Espenak identifies the extremes in perihelion for the 21st century. Minimum and maximum perihelions will be separated by 78 years. The range between the minimum and maximum extremes will be 0.0001431 AU (21,403 kilometers).

Minimum perihelion of 0.9832436 AU (roughly 147,091,139 kilometers) will occur Jan. 5, 2020, at 7:48 UTC (2:48 a.m. EST). January 2020’s perihelion will be 6,935 kilometers less than the mean perihelic value of 0.9832899 AU (147,098,074 kilometers).

Maximum perihelion of 0.9833866 AU (roughly 147,112,542 kilometers) will occur Jan. 5, 2098, at 02:34 UTC (Saturday, Jan. 4, 9:34 p.m. EST). January 2098’s perihelion will exceed the mean perihelic value of 0.9832899 AU (147,098,074 kilometers) by 14,468 kilometers.

The takeaway for Earth’s reach of 2017 perihelion two weeks after the 2016 December solstice is that Earth’s eccentric orbit produces annual extremes of maximum closeness to and remoteness from the sun.

seasonal variations; solstices signal maximum polar tipping away from or toward the sun: NASA, Public Domain, via NASA Solar System Exploration

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Earth’s remoteness (aphelion) and proximity (perihelion) in orbiting the sun: Alexander Novati, Public Domain, via NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory SciJinks @ http://scijinks.jpl.nasa.gov/solstice/

For further information:

“10 Things About the December Solstice.” Time And Date > Sun & Moon.
Available @ http://www.timeanddate.com/calendar/ten-things-december-solstice.html

“Astronomical Unit (AU).” NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Near Earth Object Program > Glossary.
Available @ http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/glossary/au.html

Byrd, Deborah. “Everything You Need to Know: December Solstice 2016.” EarthSky > Astronomy Essentials > Earth. Dec. 15, 2016.
Available @ http://earthsky.org/?p=2951

“Current World Population.” Worldometers.
Available @ http://www.worldometers.info/world-population/

“December Solstice 2016.” Time And Date > Time Zones > World Clock > Event Time Announcer.
Available @ https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/fixedtime.html?iso=20161221T1044&msg=December%20Solstice%202016

EarthSky. “Are the December Solstice and January Perihelion Related?” EarthSky > Astronomy Essentials > Space. Dec. 31, 2015.
Available @ http://earthsky.org/space/are-the-december-solstice-and-the-january-perihelion-related

EarthSky. “Why Aren’t the Earliest Sunsets on the Shortest Day?” EarthSky > Earth. Dec. 7, 2014.
Available @ http://earthsky.org/earth/winter-solstice-and-late-sunrise

Erickson, Kristen. “What Causes the Seasons?” NASA Space Place > Seasons.
Available @ http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/seasons/en/

Espenak, Fred. “Astronomical Events in 2016.” EarthSky > Astronomy Essentials > Science Wire > Space. May 3, 2016.
Available @ http://earthsky.org/space/astronomical-phenomena-events-for-this-year

Espenak, Fred. “Earth at Perihelion and Aphelion: 2001 to 2100 Greenwich Mean Time.” Astro Pixels > Ephemeris.
Available @ http://www.astropixels.com/ephemeris/perap2001.html

Espenak, Fred. “Solstices and Equinoxes: 2001 to 2100 Greenwich Mean Time.” Astro Pixels > Ephemeris.
Available @ http://www.astropixels.com/ephemeris/soleq2001.html

Geggel, Laura. “Why Springs Gets About 30 Seconds Shorter Every Year.” Live Science > Planet Earth. March 19, 2015.
Available @ http://www.livescience.com/50194-spring-equinox-shorter-season.html

“How Many Time Zones Are There?” Time And Date > Time Zones.
Available @ https://www.timeanddate.com/time/current-number-time-zones.html

Marriner, Derdriu. “December Solstice Always Occurs at the Same Instant Everywhere on Earth.” Earth and Space News. Wednesday, Nov. 30, 2016.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/11/december-solstice-always-occurs-at-same.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "December Solstice Opens Astronomical Winter With 2016’s Longest Night." Earth and Space News. Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2016.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/12/december-solstice-opens-astronomical.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "December Winter Solstice Opens Northern Hemisphere's Shortest Season." Earth and Space News. Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2016.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/12/december-winter-solstice-opens-northern.html

McClure, Bruce. “December Solstice Brings Longest Days for Whole Earth.” EarthSky > Tonight. Dec. 21, 2016.
Available @ http://earthsky.org/tonight/longest-days-of-year-accompany-the-december-solstice

McClure, Bruce. “N. Hemisphere? Watch for Earliest Sunsets.” EarthSky > Tonight > Dec. 7, 2016.
Available @ http://earthsky.org/tonight/earliest-sunset-today-but-not-shortest-day

McClure, Bruce. “Shortest Season Starts at December Solstice.” EarthSky > Tonight. Dec. 16, 2016.
Available @ http://earthsky.org/tonight/years-shortest-season-starts-with-december-solstice

McClure, Bruce. “Sun Reaches Southernmost Point at Solstice.” EarthSky > Tonight. Dec. 20, 2016.
Available @ http://earthsky.org/tonight/southernmost-sun-brings-december-solstice

Meeus, Jean. Astronomical Tables of the Sun, Moon, and Planets. Third edition. Richmond VA: Willmann-Bell, Inc., 2015.

“Perihelion, Aphelion and the Solstices.” Time And Date > Sun & Moon.
Available @ http://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/perihelion-aphelion-solstice.html

“Seasons: Meteorological and Astronomical.” Time And Date > Calendar.
Available @ http://www.timeanddate.com/calendar/aboutseasons.html

“Shortest Day of the Year in the Northern Hemisphere.” Time And Date > Sun & Moon.
Available @ http://www.timeanddate.com/calendar/december-solstice.html

“Solstices and Equinoxes for New York (1750 -- 1799).” Time And Date > Sun & Moon.
Available @ http://www.timeanddate.com/calendar/seasons.html?year=1750&n=179

Stoller-Conrad, Jessica. “What’s a Solstice?” NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory SciJinks (Science Hijinks). Last updated Sept. 22, 2016.
Available @ http://scijinks.jpl.nasa.gov/solstice/

Unearthed Comics @Unearthed Comics. "Unearthed Comics updated their cover photo." Facebook. Jan. 2, 2015.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/UnearthedComics/photos/a.434869023243345/825025070894403/

Webb, Brian. “UTC Conversion Table.” Space Archive Info > Coordinated Universal Time (UTC).
Available @ http://www.spacearchive.info/utc.htm

“What Is Midnight Sun or Polar Day?” Time And Date > Sun & Moon.
Available @ https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/midnight-sun.html

“What Is Polar Night?” Time And Date > Sun & Moon.
Available @ https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/polar-night.html

“Winter Solstice -- Shortest Day of the Year.” Time And Date > Sun & Moon.
Available @ http://www.timeanddate.com/calendar/winter-solstice.html

Monday, December 26, 2016

L’Italiana in Algeri Is the Dec. 31, 2016, Metropolitan Opera Saturday Matinee Broadcast

Summary: The Dec. 31, 2016, Metropolitan Opera Saturday matinee broadcast is L’Italiana in Algeri, a two-act, operatic dramma giocoso by Gioachino Rossini.

The 2016-2017 Met Opera season's performances of Rossini's L'Italiana in Algeri mark the sixth revival of Jean-Pierre Ponnelle's new staging, which debuted Nov. 10, 1973, at Met Opera: Meet Me At The Opera @MMATOpera via Twitter Oct. 7, 2016

L’Italiana in Algeri (“The Italian Girl in Algiers), a two-act, operatic dramma giocoso (“joking drama,” “playful drama”) touting feminine strategems by Italian composer Gioachino Antonio Rossini (Feb. 29, 1792-Nov. 13, 1868), is the Dec. 31, 2016, Metropolitan Opera Saturday matinee broadcast.

Italian librettist and poet Angelo Anelli (Nov. 10, 1761-April 9, 1820) wrote the Italian libretto, based upon an earlier treatment by Italian composer Luigi Mosca (1775-Nov. 30, 1824). The inspiration for Luigi Mosca’s 1808 opera buffa (“comic opera”) was the kidnapping of Antonietta Frapolli-Suini of Milan, Italy, in 1805 by Barbary (North African) pirates, her stay in the harem of the Bey of Algiers and her safe return to Milan.

The premiere took place May 22, 1813. The venue was Teatro San Benedetto in Venice, Veneto, northeastern Italy. Located in sestiere San Marco (“San Marco district”) in the old city center, Teatro San Benedetto subsequently premiered a second Rossini opera, Eduardo e Cristina, on April 24, 1819.

Rossini’s opera unfolds in the early 1800s. Algiers, a Mediterranean port city under Ottoman rule from 1516 to 1830, serves as the opera’s dangerous, exotic locale.

The Saturday matinee broadcast of L’Italiana in Algeri begins at 1 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (6 p.m. Coordinated Universal Time). The estimated run time for the performance is about 3 hours 2 minutes. The performance, sung in the original Italian, comprises two acts and one intermission.

Act I is timed at 72 minutes. A 35-minute intermission follows Act I.

Act II is timed at 75 minutes. The Saturday matinee broadcast performance ends with Act III’s final notes.

Music Director Emeritus James Levine conducts all performances, including the Saturday matinee broadcast, of L’Italiana in Algeri. His birthplace is Cincinnati, Hamilton County, southwestern Ohio. The American conductor debuted in the Metropolitan Opera’s 1971 production of Tosca by Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini (Dec. 22, 1858-Nov. 29, 1924). This season James Levine also conducts Idomeneo by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Jan. 27, 1756-Dec. 5, 1791) and Nabucco by Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (Oct. 10, 1813-Jan. 27, 1901).

Marianna Pizzolato appears in the title role as Isabella, the resourceful young Italian whose shipwreck off Algiers results in her capture by Haly, captain of the bey’s guard. The Italian mezzo-soprano’s appearance as Isabella this season marks her Metropolitan Opera debut.

Ying Fang appears as Elvira, the Bey of Algiers’ wife who learns from Isabella’s resourcefulness how to tame her husband. Her birthplace is Ningbo, northeastern Zhejiang province, eastern coastal China. The Chinese operatic soprano debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in 2013 as Madam Podtochina’s Daughter in The Nose by Russian composer and pianist Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich (Sept. 25, 1906-Aug. 9, 1975). This season Ying Fang also appears as Ilia in Mozart’s Idomeneo and as Jano in Jenůfa by Czech composer Leoš Janáček (July 3, 1854-Aug. 12, 1928).

Ying Fang shares the role of Elvira this season with Angela Mannino. Ying Fang appears in most October performances and in the Saturday matinee broadcast.

Angela Mannino appears in the Oct. 12, and Oct. 15 performances. Her hometown is Metairie, Jefferson Parish, southeastern Louisiana. The American soprano debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in 2010 as a Girl in Lulu by Alban Maria Johannes Berg (Feb. 9, 1885-Dec. 24, 1935).

René Barbera appears as Lindoro, the Bey of Algiers’ Italian slave who escapes with his true love, Isabella. He was born in Laredo, Webb County, southern Texas. The American operatic tenor’s appearance as Lindoro this season marks his Metropolitan Opera debut.

Dwayne Croft appears as Haly, the captain of the Bey’s guard who expresses admiration for Italian women. He was born in Cooperstown, Otsego County, Central New York Region, New York. The American baritone debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in 1990 as Firello in Rossini’s Il Barbiere di Siviglia. Dwayne Croft also appears this season as a Capulet in Roméo et Juliette by Charles-François Gounod (June 17, 1818-Oct. 18, 1893) and as Baron Douphol in Verdi’s La Traviata.

Ildar Abdrazakov appears as Mustafà, the Bey of Algiers who finally discards his obsession with Italian women. He was born in Ufa, Republic of Bashkortostan, southwestern Russia. The Russian bass-baritone debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in 2004 as Masetto in Mozart’s Don Giovanni. This season Ildar Abdrazakov also appears in the title role of Mozart’s Don Giovanni.

Nicola Alaimo appears as Taddeo, Isabella’s elderly admirer who accompanies her on her search for her fiancé, Lindoro. His birthplace is Palermo, Sicily, southern Italy. The Italian baritone debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in 2011 as Paolo in Verdi’s Simon Boccanegra.

Rihab Chaieb appears as Zulma, Elvira’s confidante. Her hometown is Montreal, Quebec, eastern Canada. The Canadian-Tunisian mezzo-soprano’s appearance as Zulma marks her Metropolitan Opera debut. Rihab Chaieb also appears this season as a Cretan woman in Mozart’s Idomeneo.

Operabase, an online database, places Gioachino Rossini at number four in a ranking of 1,281 most popular composers for the five seasons from 2011/2012 to 2015/16. L’Italiana in Algeri places at 62 in the list of 2,658 most popular operas.

The Metropolitan Opera’s 2016 Repertory Report gives performance statistics through Oct. 31. Der Rosenkavalier holds place 70, with 78 performances, for the period from first Met performance, Dec. 5, 1919, to last performance, Oct. 26, 2016. Part of the Metropolitan Opera’s 2016-2017 season falls outside the report’s parameters.

The takeaway for L’Italiana in Algeri as the Dec. 31, 2016, Metropolitan Opera Saturday matinee broadcast is Isabella’s spunky spirit and undaunted determination to resolve all challenges in her pursuit of a happy ending with her fiancé.

Rossini's L'Italiana in Algeri airs as the Dec. 31, 2016, Saturday matinee broadcast during the 2016-2017 Met Opera season: The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera via Facebook Oct. 20, 2016

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Rossini's L'Italiana in Algeri airs as the Dec. 31, 2016, Saturday matinee broadcast during the 2016-2017 Met Opera season: The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera via Facebook Oct. 20, 2016, @ https://www.facebook.com/MetOpera/photos/a.134969600532.229232.20807115532/10157728687800533/

For further information:

Barbiera, Raffaello. Passioni del Risorgimento: Nuove Pagine Sulla Principessa Belgiojoso e il suo Tempo con Documenti Inediti e Illustrazioni. Milano, Italia: Fratelli Treves, 1903.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/passionidelrisor00barbuoft

Bazzetta de Vemenia, Nino. Luci e Penombre di Lombardia: Donne ed Amori, Ville e Misteri di Milano e del Lario. Como, Italy: Libreria Editrice Omarini Vittorio, 1921.
Available @ http://opera.stanford.edu/Rossini/Italiana/Frapolli.html

"Composers: Composers Ranked by the Number of Performances of Their Operas Over the Five Seasons 2011/2012 to 2015/16." Operabase > Opera Statistics.
Available @ http://operabase.com/top.cgi?lang=en

“Debut: Joshua Benaim, Angela Mannino, Tom Mulvaney, Frank Colardo.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 353539 Lulu {34} Metropolitan Opera House: 05/08/2010.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=353539

“L’Italiana in Algeri.” Letteratura Dimenticata > Barbiera.
Available @ http://www.letteraturadimenticata.it/Barbiera.htm

“L’Italiana in Algeri.” Stanford University Opera Glass > Opera Composers. April 2, 2008.
Available @ http://opera.stanford.edu/Rossini/Italiana/main.html

Meet Me At The Opera @MMATOpera. "Plans tonight #NewYork? L'Italiana in Algeri @MetOpera." Twitter. Oct. 7, 2016.
Available @ https://twitter.com/MMATOpera/status/784459133386883072

Metropolitan Opera. “L’Italiana in Algeri: Trailer.” YouTube. Oct. 6, 2016.
Available @ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pquiHWHHEPQ

The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera. "On Stage Tonight: Rossini's L'Italiana in Algeri! Ildar Abdrazakov, Marianna Pizzolato, René Barbera, Tenor, Nicola Alaimo, Rihab Chaieb, Mezzo-Soprano, Ying Fang and Dwayne Croft star. Maestro James Levine conducts. bit.ly/2eyiHrC Photo by Ken Howard/Met Opera." Facebook. Oct. 20, 2016.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/MetOpera/photos/a.134969600532.229232.20807115532/10157728687800533/

“Performances Statistics Through October 31, 2016.” MetOpera Database > The Metropolitan Opera Archives > Repertory Report.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/Database%20Opera%20Statistics.xml

Sunday, December 25, 2016

Helleborus ‘HGC Joshua’ Has White to Light Green Flowers

Summary: Helleborus ‘HGC Joshua,’ a Christmas rose (Helleborus niger) cultivar by German breeder Joseph Heuger, has white to light green flowers.

side view of flower of Helleborus ‘HGC Joshua’ in images included in Joseph Heuger’s patent application, filed Feb. 17, 2006, with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO): color scans via Plant Patents Image Database, Engineering & Physical Science Library (USPTO designation: College Park Patent & Trademark Resource Center), University of Maryland, CC BY 2.0, via University of Maryland’s Plant Patents Image Database @ http://www.lib.umd.edu/plantpatents/binaries/17900/pp17957.pdf

Helleborus ‘HGC Joshua,’ a Lenten rose, or black hellebore (Helleborus orientalis), cultivar by German hellebore hybridizer Joseph Heuger, has white to light green flowers and dark green leaves.

On Feb. 17, 2006, Heuger filed an application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office for a patent for Helleborus ‘HGC Joshua.’ Primary examiner Kent Ball and assistant examiner Annette H. Para reviewed Heuger’s application. On Aug. 28, 2007, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office assigned plant patent number 17,957 to Helleborus ‘HGC Joshua.’

‘HGC Joshua’ has its origins in a breeding program conducted in December 1999 by the inventor. Unnamed, unpatented female and male Helleborus niger seedlings were cross-pollinated in a controlled environment at Heuger’s family nursery, Heuger Gartenbaubetriebe, in Glandorf, Lower Saxony state, northwestern Germany.

Heuger discovered and selected the flowering plant now known as Helleborus ‘HGC Joshua’ from among the cross-pollinated parents’ progeny. ‘HGC Joshua’ exhibited distinctive traits of a compact, upright habit; attractively colored flowers and leaves; an early and long flowering season.

Heuger’s application describes approximately 1-year-old plants that were grown in 13-centimeter (5.11-inch) containers in a glass-covered greenhouse in winter and in an outdoor summer nursery. Production temperatures in the greenhouse registered about 12 degrees Celsius (53.6 degrees Fahrenheit) during the day and ranged from about 2 degrees to about 12 degrees C (35.6 to 53.6 degrees F) during the night. Temperatures in the outdoor nursery ranged from about 5 to 34 degrees C (41 to 93.2 degrees F) during the day and from about 1 to about 25 degrees C (33.8 to 77 degrees F) during the night.

When planted in the ground, Helleborus ‘HGC Joshua’ has a temperature tolerance that ranges from about minus 10 to about 36 degrees C (14 to 96.8 degrees F).

Heuger’s Helleborus niger cultivar displays a moderately vigorous growth habit. Its compact, upright form features basal leaves and single flowers. Height ranges are from about 8 to 12 centimeters (3.14 to 4.72 inches). Spread, or width, ranges from about 20 to 25 centimeters (7.87 to 9.84 inches).

Basal foliage is palmately compound. Five to seven leaflets radiate from each leaf’s petiole, the stalk attaching the leaf to the stem.

Lanceolate, or lance-shaped, leaflets have serrated margins. Upper and lower surfaces have textures described hairlessly smooth, or glabrous, and leathery.

Leaflet length ranges from about 3.5 to 6 centimeters (1.37 to 2.36 inches). Width range is from about 1.5 to 3 centimeters (0.59 to 1.18 inches).

Upper surfaces of developing and fully expanded leaflets are dark green (close to Royal Horticultural Society colour chart color 147A). Veins are brown green (RHS 146B).

Lower surfaces of developing and fully expanded leaflets are brown green (close to RHS 147B). Veins are brown green (RHS 146C).

Petioles have lengths of about 1 to 8 millimeters (0.039 to 0.314 inches). Diameter range is from about 2 to 2.5 millimeters (0.078 to 0.098 inches).

Upper and lower surfaces of petioles are hairlessly smooth, described as glabrous.

Upper and lower surfaces of petioles are brown green (RHS 146C to 146D). Random spots are dark brown (RHS 200A to 200B).

Helleborus ‘HGC Joshua’ has an early and long natural flowering season. Intermittent flowering occurs from November to February in Germany. A freely flowering habit yields about 10 to 15 developing flowers per plant over the blooming period. On the plant, flowers last about 10 days.

Single rounded flowers are each borne in a single arrangement on upright peduncles, or floral stems. Flowers have a slight fragrance and mostly face uprightly to outwardly.

Ovoid, or egg-shaped, buds are about 1.2 centimeters (0.47 to inches) in height. Bud diameter is about 8 centimeters (3.14 inches).

Each flower typically comprises five to eight sepals, arranged in a single whorl. Sepal length ranges from about 2.5 to 3 centimeters (0.98 to 1.18 inches). Sepal width is about 2 centimeters (0.78 inches).

Broadly ovate, or egg-shaped, sepals have smooth margins, described as entire. Textures of upper and lower surfaces are described as glabrous, with hairless smoothness, and satiny.

Upper and lower surfaces of fully expanded sepals are bright white (more than RHS 155D), with light green (RHS 144C) toward the base. With development, coloring approaches light green (close to RHS 144B to 144C).

Peduncles are strong, with a mostly upright orientation. Peduncle texture is hairlessly smooth, described as glabrous.

Peduncle length ranges from about 10 to 25 centimeters (3.93 to 9.84 inches). Diameter range is from about 2 to 5 millimeters (0.078 to 0.19 inches).

Peduncle coloring is light green (RHS 145B), with brown purple (RHS 178A) spots.

Heuger’s 2015-2016 hellebore catalog lists ‘HGC Joshua’℗ as available in containers sized 11 to 13 centimeters (4.33 to 5.11 inches). Growth is described as compact. Selling is targeted to begin in mid-November.

The takeaway for Helleborus ‘HGC Joshua’ is the early, long blooming period, from late autumn through winter, that Heuger’s Christmas rose cultivar enjoys and the pleasing colors that Joshua’s white to light green flowers and dark green leaves contribute to fresh cut arrangements and to in-ground and potted garden spaces.

Helleborus Joshua, German hellebore hybridizer Joseph Heuger's Christmas rose cultivar, shows well in floral displays: CowellsGardenCentre @CowellsgCentre via Twitter Dec. 11, 2011

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Helleborus Joshua, German hellebore hybridizer Joseph Heuger's Christmas rose cultivar, shows well in floral displays: CowellsGardenCentre @CowellsgCentre via Twitter Dec. 11, 2011, @ https://twitter.com/CowellsgCentre/status/145810543641493504

For further information:

Burrell, C. Colston; Judith Knott Tyler. Hellebores: A Comprehensive Guide. Portland OR: Timber Press, 2006.

Burrell, C. Colston; Judith Knott Tyler. “Not Your Mother’s Hellebores: A New Look at Species and Hybrids (Part 2).” Pacific Horticulture magazine. January 2008.
Available @ http://www.pacifichorticulture.org/articles/not-your-mothers-hellebores-part-2/

CowellsGardenCentre @CowellsgCentre. "A canny cracking Christmas combo - Skimmia 'Temptation' & Helleborus 'Joshua.' Twitter. Dec. 11, 2011.
Available @ https://twitter.com/CowellsgCentre/status/145810543641493504

“Hellebore (Helleborus niger Gold Collection® Joshua).” The National Gardening Association > Plants Database > Hellebores.
Available @ http://garden.org/plants/view/586778/Hellebore-Helleborus-niger-Gold-Collection-Joshua/

“Helleborus Plant Named ‘HGC Joshua.’” United States Patent and Trademark Office > Program in Word (PIW). Aug. 28, 2007.
Available @ http://pdfpiw.uspto.gov/.piw?PageNum=0&docid=PP017957

“HGC Joshua’℗.” Heuger > Katalog Helleborus 2015-2016.
Available @ http://www.heuger.com/fileadmin/lookbook/page5.html#/14

Marriner, Derdriu. “Helleborus ‘COSEH 710’ Has Light Green Flowers With Reddish Pink Flushes.” Earth and Space News. Sunday, Nov. 13, 2016.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/11/helleborus-coseh-710-has-light-green.html

Marriner, Derdriu. “Helleborus ‘COSEH 740’ Has White Flowers and Dark Green Leaves.” Earth and Space News. Saturday, Nov. 26, 2016.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/11/helleborus-coseh-740-has-white-flowers.html

Marriner, Derdriu. “A Helleborus Plant Named ‘COSEH 700’ Has Large Light Green Flowers.” Earth and Space News. Saturday, Nov. 12, 2016.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/11/a-helleborus-plant-named-coseh-700-has.html

Marriner, Derdriu. “A Helleborus Plant Named ‘HGC Jacob’ Has White to Light Green Flowers.” Earth and Space News. Sunday, Nov. 6, 2016.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/11/a-helleborus-plant-named-hgc-jacob-has.html

“PP17957 -- Helleborus Plant Named ‘HGC Joshua.’” University of Maryland > Plant Patents Image Database.
Available @ http://www.lib.umd.edu/plantpatents/id/13922

Rice, Graham; Elizabeth Strangman. The Gardener’s Guide to Growing Hellebores. Newton Abbot, England: David and Charles, 2005.