Daily Postcard: Moon Rising Toward Mars
Daily Postcard: Moon rising toward Mars at 7:08 p.m. Thursday. Mars was about as close as it has ever been to the Earth in 2022. Mars appeared three times its normal size. In many parts of the U.S., the Moon obscured (covered) Mars Thursday evening. In New Mexico, the Moon passed below Mars. At 9:07 p.m. in Los Alamos, this picture shows a jet passing above Mars. The red glow of the engine is visible. This photo shows what can be captured these days using only a cell phone camera. Photo by DWDecker
Capella star, the brightest star in the Auriga Constellation (high right), appears equally as bright as Mars Read More
NM Oil Conservation Division Hosting Rapid Hire Event
Courtesy/OCD
OCD News:
SANTA FE — The Oil Conservation Division (OCD) of the Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department (EMNRD) will host a virtual Rapid Hire event this month.
The 12-5 p.m. Dec. 15 event will be held via Zoom.
The OCD is seeking qualified candidates for 13 positions related to orphan well plugging, remediation and reclamation, administration, legal and more. The position descriptions and necessary qualifications are available on the New Mexico State Personnel Office website.
The OCD regulates oil and gas activity in New Mexico. It gathers oil and gas well production Read More
NMED Issues Fact Sheet For The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant Draft Operating Permit
Environment Secretary James Kenney
NMED News:
SANTA FE — The New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) issued a fact sheet Thursday, summarizing the department’s proposed changes to the hazardous waste operating permit for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) located in Carlsbad, New Mexico.
The fact sheet is an initial step in providing the permittees, the Department of Energy and Nuclear Waste Partnership, LLC, as well as interested stakeholders and members of the public an understanding of the proposed changes associated with the renewal of the WIPP hazardous waste operating permit. Read More
LANL Foundation Continues Grant Partnership With Mora ISD To Assist In Staff Renewal, Retention, Capacity Building
LANL Foundation’s Grants Manager Sylvan Argo and President/CEO Jenny Parks at a Dec. 6 event presenting Superintendent Marvin MacAuley with a $10,000 grant award check. Photo by Whitney Jones/LANL Foundation
LANL Foundation News:
ESPAÑOLA — The Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) Foundation continued its support of and partnership with Mora Independent School District (Mora ISD) this week with a unique $10,000 grant to help with staff renewal, retention, and capacity building.
The LANL Foundation is celebrating their 25th anniversary this year and these Forward, Together grants Read More
2023 Los Alamos Master Gardner Class Begins Jan. 7
SFNF Headquarters Halts All Sales Until New Year
SFNF News:
SANTA FE — There will be no sales at the Santa Fe National Forest (SFNF) Headquarters Dec. 12 to Jan. 9, 2023, due to a brief staffing shortage.
The SFNF Headquarters at 11 Forest Lane in Santa Fe, will still be open to answer questions and assist visitors with other issues.
Recent staff departures have reduced the number of designated collection officers authorized to accept payment for fuelwood permits, maps, America the Beautiful interagency passes and other Forest Service products. Those products are still available for purchase 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday at the SFNF Read More
Daily Postcard: Moon Shines Through Airport Sign
Daily Postcard: December full moon spotted Thursday evening shining through the Los Alamos County Airport sign. Photo by Ron Roybal Read More
Nearly Foot Of Snow Falls In 24 Hours At Purgatory
Courtesy/Purgatory
PURGATORY News:
Purgatory is excited to report nearly a foot of new snow in the last 24 hours. Purgatory received 9 inches overnight, bringing storm totals to 10 inches over the past week. More snow is expected Wednesday, with additional storms expected Friday and early next week.
We’ve had excellent early-season conditions thanks to Purgatory’s significant investment in snowmaking and a little help from Mother Nature, who has brought cold temperatures and consistent snow since early November.
Lifts 1, 2, 7 and 13 are open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. with skiing on 12 Read More
N3B Los Alamos Seeks Next Generation Of Employees For Environmental Cleanup At LANL
Rebecca Trujillo recently joined N3B Los Alamos as a field execution technical lead after attending an N3B job fair at Northern New Mexico College. She represents EM’s sought-after next generation of employees to continue its environmental cleanup mission across the DOE complex. Courtesy/N3B Los Alamos
N3B News:
A series of recent job fairs hosted by N3B Los Alamos have resulted in 26 new employees supporting the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management (DOE EM) mission to address environmental impacts from legacy operations at Los Alamos National Laboratory.
The Read More
Balderas Requests U.S. DHS Secretary Intervene For New Mexicans, Communities Recovering From Wildfire Disaster
Attorney General Hector Balderas
AG News:
ALBUQUERQUE — New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas sent a letter to United States Department of Homeland Security Secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas, requesting assistance for New Mexico families struggling to access disaster relief funding in their efforts to recover from the Calf Canyon/Hermit’s Peak wildfire disaster, and stressed the need for flexible, localized regulation in the post-disaster recovery effort.
The letter reads as follows:
Dear Secretary Mayorkas,
As New Mexico’s Chief Law Enforcement Officer, I am, like you, primarily Read More
Daily Postcard: Foggy Valley Viewed From Pajarito Cliffs Site
Daily Postcard: Foggy view of the valley viewed Monday Pajarito Cliffs Site. Photo by Darby Martinez Read More
Daily Postcard: Morning Mist Settles Over White Rock
Daily Postcard: Early morning mist viewed Monday from Sherwood Boulevard south of Grand Canyon in White Rock. Photo by Kirk Christensen Read More
PEEC: Hot Chocolate And Movie At Planetarium Dec. 10
PEEC News:
The community is invited to a screening of the beloved holiday movie, Home Alone 2, 4-6:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 10 at the Los Alamos Nature Center, 2600 Canyon Road.
A hot chocolate bar opens at 4 p.m. and the movie starts at 4:30 p.m. Attendees are encouraged to wear an “ugly” holiday sweater or pajamas and slippers to get into the holiday spirit.
About Home Alone 2 (2012):
One year after Kevin McCallister was left home alone and had to defeat a pair of bumbling burglars, he accidentally finds himself stranded in New York City – and the same criminals are not far behind.
Run time: 2 hours. Read More
Weekly Fishing Report: Dec. 6, 2022
By GEORGE MORSE
Sports And Outdoors
Los Alamos Daily Post
This is a slow time of the season for anglers. Many lakes and streams are freezing over. However, the ice is not yet thick enough to open the lakes to ice fishing.
Conditions at lakes on State Parks can be obtained by calling the individual parks. Conditions at lakes not located on State Parks can be obtained from local sources. Use extreme caution on lakes where the ice conditions are unknown.
Once the ice conditions improve, ice fishing can be good at several locations. Eagle Nest Lake probably offers the best ice fishing. Fenton Lake State Read More
PEEC: Learn Monitoring & Forecasting Snow Pack Dec. 8
PEEC News:
Learn about monitoring snow and other climatic conditions with Snow Telemetry (SNOTEL) Networks from Hydrologic Technician Jaz Ammon 6-7 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 8.
Ammon works with montane climate and weather monitoring for the purpose of water supply forecasting. She will discuss how measurements of the mountain snowpack translate into data that guides decision-making for water users throughout New Mexico.
For more information about this event, visit the following link, Snow Telemetry Networks & Forecasting Snow Pack, and for other PEEC programs, visit peecnature.org/events Read More
Daily Postcard: Fog-filled Sunrise Viewed From Los Pueblos
Daily Postcard: Sunrise over a fog-filled Rio Grande Valley viewed early Monday from the east end of Los Pueblos Street. Photo by Steve Greene Read More
Another Buck Spotted With Stuff Stuck In Its Antlers
Another buck spotted with stuff stuck in its antlers, this time in the yard of a home today on Yucca Street. Photo by John Halladay Read More
NASA Funds Scale-Up Of UbiQD’s Fluorescent Greenhouse Roofing Technology
Schematic of UbiGro Cover, a new product that leverages twin-screw extrusion to incorporate fluorescent quantum dots into the roofing of greenhouses. UbiGro Cover 590 (orange) is launching for pilot projects in early 2023. Courtesy/UbiQD, Inc.
UbiQD News:
- On the heels of several technology development milestones and recently granted patents, new funding from NASA will accelerate the scale-up of UbiGro® quantum dot technology for greenhouse roofing
UbiQD, Inc., a New Mexico-based advanced materials company, announced today that it was recently awarded a new small business contract Read More
Curbside Winter Market At Fuller Lodge Parking Lot Thursday
Daily Postcard: Black Bear Cub Climbs Tree In Bandelier
Daily Postcard: A black bear cub climbs a tree in Bandelier National Monument (BNM). Most mature female black bears are already sleeping in a den where they will give birth to cubs in January or February. Although mating for black bears usually occurs in the spring, the embryo doesn’t implant and begin to grow until November. Two to three tiny cubs are born with closed eyes, hairless and helpless, utterly dependent on their mom. The entire family spends much of the winter snoozing, the mother waking frequently to care for her babies, then returning to slumber. The whole family emerges from the den Read More
