Clouded out for impact here in MN but the pros who have much more powerful telescopes & clear sky... saw nothing 🤷‍♂️ LOL. I have a feeling trajectory calculation was off just enough to move impact over the limb out of view. Oh well. Here's the moon thru my telescope after sky cleared 45 min later.

Matthew Vinge@mvinge.bsky.social · 21h ago

📢 Kinda wild astronomical event tonight: A spent 4-ton SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket stage is crashing into Moon near Einstein Crater at 5,400 mph! I'm hoping to catch vid/pics of dust plume rising over lunar limb with my 🔭! Impact: ~1:35am CDT. It'd be awesome if I can get it. We'll see. Stay tuned!🤞🚀🌚

📢 Kinda wild astronomical event tonight: A spent 4-ton SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket stage is crashing into Moon near Einstein Crater at 5,400 mph! I'm hoping to catch vid/pics of dust plume rising over lunar limb with my 🔭! Impact: ~1:35am CDT. It'd be awesome if I can get it. We'll see. Stay tuned!🤞🚀🌚

Scored $40 obstructed view tix to sold out Kesha show. The new Mystic Lake Amphitheater open GA sections are so big you just gotta get in the door Very young crowd singin it like its 2010. This her first time performing unedited legacy catalog since her Warrior Tour. I saw that at Myth in Aug 2013

No aurora last night. However, found new viewing location to add to my map. Quintessential spot. Secluded lake, nothing but wilderness for miles north & a firetower to climb 15 min away! I'll be back. Also...🐻! Thought it was dog at first but nope, juvenile black bear! Scared F out of each other lol

Too early to get excited (3 hrs until dark in Minnesota) however, there is potential for aurora after dark if this maintains until 10pm. That BZ dip into the red is what we were hoping for. That means she's charging up but it needs to stay negative for at least few more hrs. We'll see! 👀🤞

Vincent Ledvina@vincentledvina.bsky.social · 3d ago

Quite dramatic change in the solar wind conditions just now... perhaps we are entering a different part of the CME? IF this south Bz can sustain for some time, I would say there are better chances of mid-latitude auroras for S. Canada and northern U.S. states.

Zinnia flowers by moonlight last night.

This owl was battling another owl in the middle of Shepard Road when I rolled up. The other one flew away but this dude blocked the road and stared me down for like 30 seconds.

When I was little I would collect sea glass from Lake Superior. I had 1 gallon ziplock STUFFED full of blue, green, brown. I want it for some projects now but I dont know what happened to it. It was easy to find handfuls after an hour on shore in 90s but is it still that easy?? I dont think it is 😢

Mystic Lake Amphitheater shows come w elevated view of sunsets over the MN River Valley. I like that. However, depending on shows timing, I see potential for it to be annoying to be facing west on a clear summer day? We'll see. I like the place. This is a great GA section w panoramic views.

Dude. I'm in! The Minnesota State Fair Fine Arts exhibition is one of the most competitive art shows in the state with a 11-15% acceptance rate. This was my 3rd year attempting to get in. My first art exhibition ever 😎 See you at the Fine Arts building!

Matthew Vinge@mvinge.bsky.social · 2w ago

MN State Fair photography submissions are due today. These are the photos I've taken in the last year that got the most attention online. If I were to choose which one to submit, I would submit the floating house but sometimes I'm surprised by what others think. Which one would you submit?

It's gonna be a great night for an outdoor Black Crowes concert. Last Black Crowes show I saw was at MN Zoo 15+ years ago. Lookin forward to it. Chris Robinson is easily top 5 rock voices of the last 30 years. Stubhub has the hook up for $25. Just fyi!

I caught tonight's moon low enough on the horizon to get the orange tint at the end of sunset with some extra help from the smoke haze. This is a composite of two photos from same spot. One focused on the moon and one focused on leaves.

The coolest photos you'll ever take are the ones that were never part of the plan. That's pretty much a rule. Went scouting for photo locations for the upcoming peak of Perseids meteor shower and came back with a this cool pic of an increasingly rare, small town outdoor vending machine.

Cruel Intentions @ LUSH in Minneapolis. The shows are selling out as the reviews roll in and word spreads about this super fun, R-rated, 90s jukebox musical. Our final performance on Friday sold out days ago. Tonight is your last chance BUT it'll also sell out by showtime! 🎭🕺😈💃🎸🎶💋

Best View of Minneapolis From a Big Box Retail Store Parking Lot goes to... 🥁 Pet Smart in New Brighton 🏆

MN State Fair photography submissions are due today. These are the photos I've taken in the last year that got the most attention online. If I were to choose which one to submit, I would submit the floating house but sometimes I'm surprised by what others think. Which one would you submit?

"I'd be pissed off if I paid $150 for this concert." Heard from multiple people walking away after watching Yacht Fest for free from across the river. The Strokes barely reached into their hits for the short set, almost no crowd acknowledgement, played maybe 1 hour, no encore.

The Strokes at Yacht Club Fesitval, closing out the weekend. Whoever said the kids nowadays won't dance in public anymore was wrong. Haven't stopped for 20min. That's encouraging. After I took this vid, they walked over to me & I realized they're students from school I teach at.

I feel bad for the singers forced to ruin their voice in this smoke at Yacht Club Festival. It's already unhealthy to breath normally out there. It's actually dangerous and damaging to sing and force that air through vocal cords for an hour. They will feel it for days. They can't be happy about it

Minneapolis tonight from Prospect Park. Can you spot Venus? ♀️ The moon setting now so we get dark skies for this first weekend of the annual Perseids meteor shower. The peak is in few weeks but can prob catch at least a few good ☄️ before sunrise when smoke returns.

I'm playing 🎸 live in super sexy hot & spicy 90's jukebox musical, Cruel Intentions! @ LUSH Lounge & Theater, Minneapolis. Yes, THAT Cruel Intentions! 🎬 🎭 5 nights left. Hottest ticket in town & it will sell out! If you want to go but cant find tix for the night you want, DM me.

Minneapolis tonight.

Traffic is significantly light today. Like, easily 25+ min shaved off normal rush hour commute. I guess people stayed home today?

My eyeballs hurt. Indoors. With a HEPA blasting. It's only 7 hours after the smoke arrived. F. Stagnant air + no wind + 100° heat dome + worst air quality on record This is going to be a brutal and dangerous 48 hours. You need to be wearing an N95 outside.

Jeonqmi Cartoon Character Close-up

ALT: Jeonqmi Cartoon Character Close-up

static.klipy.com

Reminder to check your car cabin filter. Tbh I suggest you upgrade to HEPA filter If this is our new normal for summer, you'll wanna protect yourself from harmful air quality whenever you can. It adds up I thought few weeks of smoke last year was bad but this will be worse

I found these Patriot Front stickers on/and outside Ramsey County government property in the first days following George Floyd murder. I called the St. Paul police and the FBI tip line to try and get them to investigate. They both told me it was waste of time and to fck off 🤷‍♂️ 6 years ago.

Kat Stafford@katstafford.bsky.social · last mo.

The embodiment of a picture being worth a thousand words. Caption: Members of the group Patriot Front ride the metro as a commuter looks on, during the 250th anniversary of U.S. independence in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 4, 2026. REUTERS/Cheney Orr"

I made a stop on my way north to buy sparklers just hoping I'd get a chance to take this aurora pic. About 2 hours later there it was. It took me forever to get it right. I only had 2 sparklers left when I finally nailed the heart. Lol. Gonna be hard to beat these 4th of July fireworks today! 🧨🎇🎉🇺🇸

I would usually hold off saying anything until close to dark bc this can all change, BUT bc many ppl are on vacation and already up north in good positions, you may want to keep an eye out after dark 👀 It's possible we get early aurora "fireworks" after dark but only *IF CONDITIONS HOLD* Stay tuned!

The Offspring started their UK tour recently. They're doing some fun covers including an Ozzy Osbourne medley and "Love Story" by Taylor Swift with the goal of inciting an ultra rare TS induced mosh pit. Lol. It works.

Unexpected Cover! The Offspring Play Taylor Swift’s “Love Story” #TheOffspring #TaylorSwift #Love

YouTube video by Much Music

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Forgot to mention this area is prob the best view for fireworks in the SW metro. You can see the big Mystic Lake & Valley Fair displays plus dozens of others on the horizon 🎆 I used to gatekeep this spot bc I wanted it for myself & friends but...I don't live there anymore lol

Matthew Vinge@mvinge.bsky.social · last mo.

The Strawberry Moon 🍓🌚 makes it's appearance tonight above Minnesota River Valley bluffs at Flying Cloud Airport. Your looking at the Mystic Lake spotlights and Valley Fair just beyond Grass Lake and the river. There is a whole lot of interesting MN history in this view.