The Daily Croissant

by Babak A. Tafreshi

"Bright planet Jupiter, starry sky and the band of Milky Way as seen in dark night of African Sahara. Deep in Tassili National Park, in the heart of the Sahara desert in southern Algeria, giant eroded sandstone cliffs are barely illuminated by the photographer flashlight. Prehistoric skygazers surely witnessed a similar sky. In addition to dramatic sandstone formations, the Tassili region is noted for rock paintings and archaeological sites dating to neolithic times."

Fluorite - Elmwood mine, Carthage, Smith Co., Tennessee, USA

Very fine and unusual etched fluorite, classic from this locality. On the top side are "normal" deep purple cubic fluorite crystals. The "bottom" consists of naturally etched crystallized fluorite. The crystals are lustrous and partly gemmy. Interesting and attractive piece! Size: 9.6 x 6.0 x 3.5 cm

"Nearly a week after Hurricane Irene drenched New England with rainfall in late August 2011, the Connecticut River was spewing muddy sediment into Long Island Sound and wrecking the region's farmland just before harvest. The Thematic Mapper on the Landsat 5 satellite acquired this true-color satellite image on September 2, 2011.  

With its headwaters near the Canadian border, the Connecticut River drains nearly 11,000 square miles (28,500 square kilometers) and receives water from at least 33 tributaries in Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Connecticut. The 410-mile river—New England's longest—enters Long Island Sound near Old Lyme, Connecticut, and is estimated to provide 70 percent of the fresh water entering the Sound."