Mono Lake View Threatened!

Sunrise reflection at Mono Lake, California

These are fairly normal photography conditions just before dawn at Mono Lake in California’s Eastern Sierra:  calm wind for a nice reflection, nice scattering of pink to orange light, and in the Spring and Fall a nice dusting of snow on the 13,000 foot summits of Mt. Dana and Mt. Gibbs in nearby Yosemite National Park.  The blue line approaching the horizon is the shadow of the earth, so when the pink alpenglow hits the Sierra Nevada, you often have the mountains bathed in bright red to orange light from the first rays of the sun.

This colorful “Belt of Venus” transition from pink to blue was described by +Philip Plait on his +Bad Astronomy blog on +Slate in February:

Moon Rise over an Arsenic Lake
http://www.slate.com/blogs/bad_astronomy/2013/02/25/the_belt_of_venus_moon_rise_into_the_earth_s_shadow.html

Scientists recently thought that there may be a unique arsenic-loving life form here at Mono Lake, which could have implied that life may take unusual forms elsewhere in the universe.  Mono Lake is unusual in many ways, but attempts to repeat the experiments seems to show that the bacteria found here is simply highly tolerant to arsenic, not confirming that arsenic could be an important part of its metabolic process.

As of June 2020, this nearly-pristine view is in danger: a major 100-unit apartment complex development is on track to be approved by the Mono County Board of Supervisors on Monday June 29, 2020. Here’s the latest update:

Tioga Inn project threatens Mono Lake views and creates harmful impacts for the Lee Vining community, Mono County, and the gateway to Yosemite National Park
“This is a critical moment for public comment. The Tioga Inn project threatens to bring a host of significant adverse impacts…”
https://www.monolake.org/today/2020/06/23/tioga-inn-project-threatens-mono-lake-views-and-creates-harmful-impacts-for-the-lee-vining-community-mono-county-and-the-gateway-to-yosemite-national-park/

Comments should be submitted ASAP to: cddcomments@mono.ca.gov.

Belt of Venus at Mono Lake

I frequently lead photography workshops in the Eastern Sierra in October, when the aspen trees in the area will turn yellow to orange and dress up the already stunning landscape. Check my schedule if you might like to join me: http://www.jeffsullivanphotography.com/blog

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