I’m sorry. Seriously, the airport area in Lincoln isn’t very exciting.
As for the plane you saw, did it look like this? Nobody from Bush & Co. has been in Lincoln recently, AFAIK. There is a National Guard air base right next to the airport, though. They do touch-and-gos and other training exercises out there all the time. Sometimes tankers and cargo planes do touch-and-gos for what seems like hours at a time. That may be what you witnessed.
Or maybe Bush’s campaign team was playing a practical joke:
Campaign advisor: Mr. President, we’re going to be stopping in Nebraska now.
Bush: What for?
CA: Well, sir, your poll numbers are down in Nebraska, and it has turned into a real battleground state. You’ll be speaking in some place called Beaver Crossing.
Bush: What?! I have to fight for Nebraska? Nebraska has always been a solid red state. What the hell have Kedwards been up to?
CA: HA! Just kidding sir. Off to Ohio we go!
When I was a kid, watching a moonrise while in full eclipse over a lake. Not only was it the most sublime shade of red, the close to the horizon perspective optical illusion made it look gigantic.
More recently, I was out for a walk when I saw a gigantic AN-124 cargo plane at about 3000 feet as it was coming in to land at Moffett Field.
I have another one: In May 1980, I got to look up into the sky and see the giant cloud of superheated ash rising from Mt. St. Helens just a few dozens miles to the southeast.
Late one night, the moon was almost directly overhead. Don’t know if it was due to fog, ice crystals or whatever in the atmosphere, but a circular rainbow was visible-the moon had a multicolored halo.
I was laying on a trampoline in my backyard looking up in the sky at nothing in particular. A bird zipped directly overhead. A few seconds later I was hit by bird crap on my chin. Glad I had my mouth shut.
A few weeks ago, I was sitting at a red light. It was very dark out. Suddenly, I noticed how large the moon was. I even pointed out to everyone in the car how bright yellow it was, and how full it was, and…and…WAIT A MINUTE…how is the moon bobbing gaily with the wind???
Just a quick note: The Perseids are in August. This is traditionally the best. The Leonids are November, and approximately every 33 years they have the potential to fill the sky!
Coolest things seen: Annular solar eclipses (2), auroras, total lunar eclipses (of various colors), Comet Hale-Bopp, Perseid meteors that changed colors and poppefd and whistled while breaking up, and the shuttle in the pre-dawn sky returing to Fl from a trial, or weather-related flight path change, IIRC? Can’t recall, but it could be seen over the Mid-Atlantic region in the 1990’s. Maybe someone recalls this, too?
Oh, a wide array of parahelion including: the most common sundogs, halos, circumzenithal arc, and a rare half-circle of an arc paralleling the horizon… beuatiful! (The circumzenithal arc is a fall-winter event; the horizon arcs is a spring-summer event…due to the angle of the sun in each season.)
Last, the thrill of finding M1 (at last) with the naked eye at a new house with skies finally dark enough! But, it won’t last…
The Leonids a few years ago. 'Twas a clear night, though certainly cold, and they sparkled like…like…we’ll I’m not so good at similes, but know that they sparkled a LOT.
A weird black triangle that flew slowly overtop of my home in the dark of night. It was about the size of a thumbnail at arm’s length, made no sound, and travelled quite slowly across the sky. It was a perfect equilateral triangle, appeared as though it has dim lights along the front edges, and was mostly visible because it was blacking out the stars behind it.
Yet another green meteor that shot overhead and landed some 200 or 300 miles north.
Actually, no, it didn’t look like that. Not nearly as much blue on it, which is what made me wonder if it really was Air Force One or not. It was all white, with a flag on the tail (about the same size as in your photo) and the blue stripe down the side was about the size of the stripe along the windows (under the “United States of America”). But there was no blue on the tail or swooping up over the cockpit, the stripe just went straight front to back.
I forgot, I’ve also seen large green meteors a couple of times. I’d also vote for anytime I was in a place with a dark sky at night. Once when I was a kid I took a telescope on a Boy Scout campout and it was the hit of the evening.
We had an annular eclipse at sunset along the Southern California coast, in 1991, but it was overcast almost everywhere.
The total eclipse of 1999 was simply awesome. I’m going to try and see the annular eclipse in Spain next year. It’s a good excuse for a Doppefest, don’t you think?
But I really want to see the total eclipse that goes from West Africa through Libya, Turkey, and Georgia. Since I have no wish to go anywhere near West Africa ever again, I’m thinking that Turkey will be the best place - start and end in Istanbul and visit assorted historical sites.
Seriously, the airport area in Lincoln isn’t very exciting.
