Go outside tonight and behold the stars – especially bright stars low on the horizon. They twinkle as irregularities in Earth's atmosphere pass by.

Unseen to the human eye, the same thing happens to signals from GPS, the Global Positioning System.

Radio signals twinkle in much the same way as bright stars appear to do at optical wavelengths. This can have effects on GPS, causing the signals to brighten and fade, and reach Earth at unpredictable times. All of this could degrade the accuracy of GPS positioning.

The twinkling occurs because signals beamed to Earth by GPS satellites pass through a layer of Earth’s atmosphere called the ionosphere.

Irregularities in the ionosphere, referred to as iononspheric depletions or bubbles in the science community, span the hemispheres at the equator and are a major element of the low latitude geospace region.

Dynamic and beautiful, these irregularities form huge horseshow arcs between hemispheres with their apexes centered on the magnetic equator.

Studying this phenomenon is the main reason NASA conducted a mission called the Coupled Ion-Neutral Dynamics Investigation, or CINDI, beginning in 2008.

The CINDI instruments were carried into space along with other instruments on board an Air Force Research Laboratory satellite called the Communication/Navigation Outage Forecasting System, or C/NOFS.

CINDI was designed to measure ionization of the upper atmosphere – including the irregularities that cause GPS twinkling.

The behavior of the irregularities responsible for the GPS twinkling turned out to be quite surprising.

“According to conventional thinking, the ionosphere becomes unstable shortly after the sun sets,” said Rod Heelis, principal investigator for CINDI at the University of Texas as Dallas. “As darkness falls, ionized atoms and molecules begin to recombine into a neutral state. During this transition period, 1 to 2 hours after sunset, irregularities are quite strong.”

As the night wears on, however, those irregularities were thought to fade, and eventually vanish around midnight.

“But that’s not what CINDI found,” said Heelis. “There were indeed many irregularities around sunset, but they did not vanish around midnight. On the contrary, there was another peak in irregularities during the middle of the night. This second peak has appeared most pronounced from June through August.”

Scientsts aren’t sure yet why this second peak occurs or why it varies by season, but Rob Pfaff, project scientist for CINDI at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland said, “This unexpected behavior is a key discovery. It shows that the ionosphere can still surprise us.”

Researchers still have much to learn about the ionosphere and how it can affect GPS and other satellite systems. CINDI re-entered Earth’s atmosphere in November of 2015, getting a one-of-a-kind, close-up look at the ionosphere before it disintegrated.

Pfaff added, “Towards the end of the C/NOFS mission, we had this great chance to measure the ionosphere at much lower altitudes than we did previously. In fact, we were able to see shear in the motions of the upper atmosphere – areas where the ionosphere at lower altitudes flowed in the opposite direction to that at higher altitudes. We think this shear may be one of the causes of the GPS twinkling.”

Next up, said Pfaff, is ICON, the Ionospheric Connection Explorer due to launch in 2017.

Led by researchers at UC Berkeley, the goal of this NASA mission is “to understand the tug-of-war between Earth’s atmosphere and the space environment.”

Like CINDI before it, ICON will learn a lot about what causes GPS twinkling – and much more.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – A new book looks at the history of Lake County's schools and their role in serving their communities.

Lake County Museum Curator Antone Pierucci's first book, “Lake County Schoolhouses,” came out at the end of June. It's part of Arcadia Publishing's “Images of America” series.

The 128-page book explores Lake County's educational history, and offers photos of schools and communities by drawing on the museum's extensive photo collection.

“It took me about a year to research and write it,” said Pierucci, who took the helm as the county's museum curator in January 2015.

As he was getting started in the job, Pierucci felt that the curator should know everything there is to know about education and schools.

Pointing out that there's no surer way to learn about an area than through how its children are educated, he began to study the topic thoroughly.

In the course of that process, Pierucci said he found the subject of Lake County's educational history more and more compelling.

“It's such a fascinating topic to me,” he said.

He decided to write a book on the subject because it would offer a continuity and permanence that exhibits and presentations don't, and allow him to share the research he had done with a wider audience.

Pierucci said it also was a way to share the museum's “phenomenal” collection of historical photos,  many of them not available publicly before now.

Photos, he added, can touch people in ways words can't.

He added that he also wrote the book to get people interested again in the Lower Lake Schoolhouse as well as the Kelsey Creek Schoolhouse that is located in Finley.

Schools, along with churches, have traditionally served as important monuments and meeting places, he said. Often, as a result of their importance, they were the largest public buildings in the communities.

“They served so many different purposes,” Pierucci explained, noting they hosted weddings, funerals, traveling carnivals, dances, recitals – “you name it.”

Schools continue to offer important gathering locations today. “Not a lot has changed in that regard,” he said.

Pierucci's time frame in the book stretches from 1856, when records show the first schools appeared, until World War II.

“By World War II, things had changed quite drastically,” he said, noting that by that point there were still one-room schoolhouses, but most had largely disappeared.

An aspect of Lake County's educational history that the book explores is school segregation. In Lake County's case, Pierucci said the aim was to separate white and Indian children.

Pierucci said the period of school segregation lasted about 30 years, with the county's last segregated school – the West Lake Indian School – shutting its doors in 1934.

Prior to that, Indian children either weren't taught at all or, if they were, it was in a haphazard manner, with the federal government trying to figure out what should be done with them, Pierucci said.

Locally, native children attended day schools – rather than boarding schools – operated by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, he said.

Pierucci said the day school structure may have helped shelter the local Pomo from the attacks on their culture that other tribes encountered in the boarding school system.

Even in day schools the children were discouraged from speaking their language or pursuing their cultural traditions, but at the end of the day they could go back to families and have their language and customs reinforced, he said.

Pierucci has been making the rounds of book signings, and he said he's getting good feedback on the book.

“People seem to enjoy it,” he said, noting that it seems to bring back for readers their own educational experiences.

Arcadia Publishing has published 800 copies of the book in this first round, and Pierucci said he has 150 on hand for sale at the museum. The copies were purchased by the nonprofits supporting the museums, so the proceeds ultimately benefit the museums, he said.

Pierucci said he makes only a small amount on the books and is unlikely to break even on his efforts. In order to avoid any impropriety he donated all of his research work and the books he purchased in the process to the museum.

“You don't get rich doing this sort of thing,” he said. “But I sure do love it.”

The museums currently are in the process of researching the history of politics in Lake County, and Pierucci said he's considering writing a companion book on that topic.

“Lake County Schoolhouses” by Antone R.E. Pierucci, ISBN: 978-1-4671-1621-3, 128 pages, paperback, $21.99.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Animal Care and Control has another big group of mostly big dogs – primarily from the working breeds – needing homes this week.

Dogs available this week include mixes of American Staffordshire Terrier, basset hound, beagle, Great Dane, Great Pyrenees, Labrador Retriever, pit bull, shepherd and terrier.

Dogs that are adopted from Lake County Animal Care and Control are either neutered or spayed, microchipped and, if old enough, given a rabies shot and county license before being released to their new owner. License fees do not apply to residents of the cities of Lakeport or Clearlake.

If you're looking for a new companion, visit the shelter. There are many great pets hoping you'll choose them.

The following dogs at the Lake County Animal Care and Control shelter have been cleared for adoption (additional dogs on the animal control Web site not listed are still “on hold”).

Pit bull terrier mix

This male pit bull terrier mix has a short gray and white coat.

He's in kennel No. 2, ID No. 5170.

Great Pyrenees mix

This male Great Pyrenees mix has a long white coat.

He is in kennel No. 3, ID No. 5263.

'Princess'

“Princess” is a pit bull terrier mix.

She has a brindle coat with white markings, and already has been spayed.

Princess is in kennel No. 4, ID No. 5361.

Pit bull terrier mix

This female pit bull terrier mix has a short black and white coat.

She's in kennel No. 5, ID No. 5378.

'Kush'

“Kush” is a female adult pit bull terrier mix.

She has a short tan coat and already is spayed.

She's in kennel No. 6, ID No. 5249.

Beagle-basset hound mix

This male beagle-basset hound mix has a short tricolor coat.

He's in kennel No. 10, ID No. 5337.

Pit bull terrier mix

This male pit bull terrier mix has a short white and brindle coat.

He's in kennel No. 12, ID No. 5342.

Shepherd mix

This male shepherd mix has a short tan and black coat. He already is altered.

He's in kennel No. 13, ID No. 5299.

American Staffordshire Terrier

This male American Staffordshire Terrier has a short black and white coat and has already been neutered.

He's in kennel No. 14, ID No. 5194.

'Zenna'

“Zenna” is a female pit bull terrier mix with a short blue and white coat.

She's in kennel No. 20, ID No. 5261.

'Yohna'

“Yohna” is a male pit bull terrier mix with a short tan and white coat.

He's in kennel No. 22, ID No. 5303.

'Storm'

“Storm” is a female pit bull terrier mix with a brown and white coat.

She's in kennel No. 24, ID No. 5363.

'Cooper'

“Cooper” is a male shepherd mix with a black and tan coat and white markings.

He's in kennel No. 25, ID No. 5377.

Great Dane-Labrador Retriever mix

This male Great Dane-Labrador Retriever mix has a short black coat with white markings.

He's in kennel No. 26, ID No. 5104.

Pit bull terrier mix

This male pit bull terrier mix has a short black and white coat.

He's in kennel No. 27, ID No. 5350.

Pit bull terrier mix

This male pit bull terrier mix is in urgent need of a new home. He's been available for adoption since May 11.

He has a short brown coat.

Shelter staff said he does not jump and is very friendly, walking well on a leash, showing no food aggression, and allowing handling of his mouth, ears, paws and tail with no problems. He also enjoys a good tummy rub.

He would do great in a home with no cats.

Shelter staff said he is great with other dogs and would do wonderful with children.

He's in kennel No. 28, ID No. 4850.

Pit bull terrier mix

This female pit bull terrier mix has a short blue and white coat.

She's in kennel No. 29, ID No. 5349.

'Sammy'

'Sammy' is a female pit bull terrier mix.

She has a short brown coat with white markings.

She's in kennel No. 30, ID No. 5214.

Labrador Retriever mix

This male Labrador Retriever mix has short black coat.

He's in kennel No. 31, ID No. 5344.

Labrador Retriever mix

This male Labrador Retriever-shepherd mix has a short all-black coat.

He's in kennel No. 32, ID No. 5158.

To fill out an adoption application online visit http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control/Adopt/Dog___Cat_Adoption_Application.htm .

Lake County Animal Care and Control is located at 4949 Helbush in Lakeport, next to the Hill Road Correctional Facility.

Office hours are Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday. The shelter is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Visit the shelter online at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control.htm .

For more information call Lake County Animal Care and Control at 707-263-0278.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

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“I'm obsessed with insects, particularly insect flight. I think the evolution of insect flight is perhaps one of the most important events in the history of life. Without insects, there'd be no flowering plants. Without flowering plants, there would be no clever, fruit-eating primates giving TED Talks.” – Michael Dickinson, UC Berkeley professor and MacArthur Genius Fellow

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – All that you have to do is peer into a clump of grass, a pond, beneath the sand or under a log to become a watchman of our diminutive neighbors, the insects.

It would take a lifetime to become well-acquainted with the habits of any one of them.

Some, like UC Berkeley Professor Michael Dickinson or naturalist Edwin Way Teale have, indeed, devoted much of their lives to bug study.

Teale created his own insect garden to study the little critters, and found that for almost every invention we humans lay claim to, an insect has already “invented” it.

For example, a needle used by a nurse or seamstress is nothing compared to the proboscis of the mosquito.

Other comparisons are found in the protective armor of a beetle, the use of paper can be found in the construction of a paper wasp's home which he builds using plant fibers and his saliva, the ball and socket was once innovative to humans, but was located in the head of an ant or bee to connect its antenna for eons.

The original potters were the mud daubers, insects who construct their homes of mud.

Although, technically, spiders belong to the arachnid family, and are not insects, they, along with insects comprise the biggest animal group on our planet.

Once, I was giving a lesson on weather in my fourth grade class. I gave each student a cricket in a paper bag and we told the air temperature by counting the chirps before we let them go. These little creatures were found to be nature's thermometers by Amos Dolbear around 1897.

The colorful boxelder bugs, just over half an inch long, with dark orange or red wing markings, appeared as if out of nowhere in large numbers recently, mating and sunning themselves before flying off.

Apparently they dine on shrubs and also lay their eggs there, with boxelder trees being their favorite sites for this pursuit.

Caterpillars are especially interesting insects to observe, with their furry thorax and abdomens propelled about by six legs, with short “prolegs” protruding from their small bodies.

Watching the lives of miniature beings is strange and fascinating all at once. Their mysterious lives play out for all to see each and every day.

For more information visit the Entomological Society of America, http://www.entsoc.org/home .

Kathleen Scavone, M.A., is a retired educator, potter, writer and author of “Anderson Marsh State Historic Park: A Walking History, Prehistory, Flora, and Fauna Tour of a California State Park” and “Native Americans of Lake County.” She also writes for NASA and JPL as one of their “Solar System Ambassadors.” She was selected “Lake County Teacher of the Year, 1998-99” by the Lake County Office of Education, and chosen as one of 10 state finalists the same year by the California Department of Education.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Mendocino College Lake Center and Lake County Theatre Co. production's of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” is now in rehearsal.

The play will be performed in Library Park in Lakeport, on Saturday, July 30 and Sunday, July 31. Entry to the event is free. Reserved seating for both shows will become available soon.

Actors have been practicing their roles in the play, one of Shakespeare’s most popular.
 
Director John Tomlinson, has selected the cast from Lake County’s most prominent and popular actors.

According to Tomlinson, “These are fine actors that will give memorable performances. They are taking to Shakespeare.”
 
As this farcical mixup of lovers opens, Theseus (Charles Berry), Duke of Athens, is preparing for his marriage to Hippolyta (Sharri Moore), queen of the Amazons.

Egeus (Mel O’Meara), an Athenian nobleman, marches into Theseus’ court with his daughter, Hermia (Helen McMahon), and her two suitors, Demetrius (Christopher Griffith) and Lysander (Zachery Kimbell-Auth).

Egeus commands Hermia to marry Demetrius, who actually loves her. But Hermia is in love with Lysander and refuses to comply. Egeus determines to put her in a nunnery or kill her if she does not follow his decision.

Hermia and Lysander plot to elope and tell their plan to Hermia’s friend Helena (Hayley Martin). Helena is in love with Demetrius, so does not want him to marry Hermia.

Helena tells Demetrius of the planned escape, and he strides into the woods intending to break up the rendezvous, followed by the doting Helena.

Will this tangled mess be resolved by a band of fairies and a group of would be thespians that inhabit these strange lands? Much wild merriment follows.
 
The production is sponsored by Friends of Mendocino College, Education Leadership Solutions LLC, Lakeport Main Street Association, Rotary Club of Lakeport, Strong Financial Network, Judy Conard and the Smith Family Trust. Many other sponsors have made contributions to the artistic effort.

To become a sponsor, call C. Richard Smith at 707-533-9230.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Gardens Project of North Coast Opportunities Inc. has been steadily working throughout the spring and summer to build two new community gardens in Lake County.

The Highland Senior Center Garden in Clearlake has been renovated and revitalized, and has been split into a production garden for the senior center’s meal program and a community garden for Clearlake residents.

A second garden has been built in Clearlake at the Praises of Zion Baptist Church for use by the church congregation and residents of the Avenues neighborhood.

These gardens are meant to provide a place to grow food for community members who do not have access to land.

With the help of volunteers, new irrigation systems have been installed and a total of 18 new raised beds have been built at the Highlands Senior Center and Praises of Zion Garden; however, there is still much work to be done.

According to Lake County Gardens Project Coordinator Ava Ryan, they need additional volunteers to build fences, tool sheds and message kiosks as well as finish up minor garden tasks.

For these large projects, “We rely on volunteers to get the job done because the work requires so many hands and so many different skill sets. The more volunteers we have the faster we can get a garden up and running,” said Ryan.

In particular, Ryan is looking for volunteers with experience in construction and fencing and irrigation installation, but she also uses volunteers to fill raised beds and teach gardening workshops and will “put whatever skills you have to use somewhere.”

Volunteering with the Gardens Project offers an excellent opportunity to give back and get to know your community, Ryan said.

Gardens Project volunteer Newman Lanier moved from the East Coast to Lake County and had only read about community gardens. He volunteered to learn more about gardening and to meet other gardeners.

Of a Highland Senior Center Garden workday, Lanier said, “It was great fun to meet everyone and lend a hand. Working along with other volunteers and organizers, I felt a sense of pride growing about Clearlake. Especially seeing the future design of the garden, I felt like I was a part of something bigger, something that I could take part in.”

Volunteer Rob Shurgis agreed that the Gardens Project allows community members to be a part of a greater movement.

“Volunteering for the Gardens Project promotes healthy eating and local sustainable practices,” he said. “We can teach the next generation to grow their own food without relying on the food industry often grown with synthetic chemicals and machines from thousands of miles away."

Ryan agreed, saying that volunteers of all ages have the opportunity to learn valuable life skills that can also be used to boost one’s resume and work experience.

Interested volunteers or gardeners should contact Project Coordinator Ava Ryan at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 707-994-4647, Extension 131.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Mark your calendar – the Lake County Weed Management Area is hosting its 13th annual “Invasive Weeds Tour” on Thursday, July 28.

The tour is free and the public is welcome and encouraged to attend.

The third week of July is California’s annual “Invasive Weed Awareness Week.” This statewide program is designed to educate citizens about the undesirable effects and impacts of non-native invasive weeds.

Participants will gather at the Anderson Marsh ranch house at 9 a.m., take a leisurely guided walk of about two miles to see the amazingly diverse array of invasive plants that flourish in the park and the effects of control mechanisms such as control burns, and return to the house for lunch and discussion of aquatic invasive weeds under the trees.

Although the event is completely free and all members of the public are invited, reservations are required. Please RSVP with the Lake County Agriculture Department at 707-263-0217 by July 25.

The tour is sponsored by Lake County Department of Agriculture, the Lake County Department of Water Resources and the Lake County Resource Conservation District.

The end-of-tour lunch is free but donations to help offset the cost of lunch and refreshments will be greatly appreciated and cheerfully accepted.