Full Moon in the Morning Sky in the Watershed

Yesterday Morning Photos

Yesterday morning saw a temperature of 16 degrees F, freezing the water which flows from the ledge of the watershed. Today is a bit warmer at 24, but still cold enough to put a skim of ice on the open water going through the Old Causeway.



The waterlevel remains high, even with the dam open, twisting our docks out of shape. The high level will also give us very little weed control this summer.

Another Dam in the News!

http://helpsavethelake.com/photos.php

http://www.wickedlocal.com/tauntongazette/obituaries/x1288316308

Yesterday's Blue Sky

Snow Cover + Warm Temperatures + Rain = Runoff Problems

Manchaug Pond is fed by runoff from the watershed - not by springs. This means that the waterlevel of the pond goes up with precipitation and from the water that drains in from the surrounding yards, forests and hillsides. Today's warm temperatures caused most of the 2 inch snowcover in the watershed to melt. With frozen and saturated ground and heavy rains, this brought a lot of water into the lake from the watershed.

Of concern to the MPA are the problems which arise from this stormwater runoff: flooded roads, erosion, non-point source pollution of sediment, organic matter, road salt, etc. Our 319 grant will address 5 such problem sites around the lake.

These photos taken today show just 2 out of over 20 non-point source pollution problem areas identified around Manchaug Pond.



The 319 grant will address pipes such as this which go directly into the lake to be replaced with retention pools, stormdrains and other designs which will filter the stormwater before it gets to the lake. Eliminating these sources of pollution will greatly reduce aquatic weed growth and improve the quality of the waters of Manchaug Pond.




Thanks to our 1st Vice President and 319 Grant Coordinator for the photos!

Lunar Eclipse on Weds., Feb 20th

While this photo was taken of a full moon over the YMCA Camp Blanchard on Manchaug Pond the evening of January 21st, this Wednesday will give us all plenty of opportunity - actual 3 hours and 26 minutes - to view and capture photos of a lunar eclipse. The eclipse will begin at 8:43 p.m. in eastern North America with totality or mid-eclipse being reached at 10:26 p.m. The moon travels west to east and is very visible in the evening/night sky from Manchaug Pond, especially in the early evening from areas 5,6,7, 8 and 1. Below are a couple of links from NASA which will aid your viewing - even instructions on photographing. Mid-eclipse can be particularly spectacular as the moon can take on a very vibrant red-orange glow.

http://www.mreclipse.com/Special/LEprimer.html

http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/LEmono/TLE2008Feb21/TLE2008Feb21.html

If you do take a photo - please email it to me and I'll share it with our readers.

Dam Open as Rain and Snow Continue

Pictures taken this morning as the dam was open has it has been this past week sending more white water out of Manchaug Pond and flooding the area below the dam.