A long period of cloudy skies began on Friday, 3 July 2026. On Monday, 6 July, the sky cleared but was so hazy I did not open the observatory. Early Tuesday morning, 7 July, before the temperature became too hot, I put the Dome Cover ON as there were Monsoon thunderstorms in the forecasts for the remainder of the week. Early Wednesday morning, 8 July, I did some long delayed maintenance on the outdoor carpet on the observatory concrete pad. During the daytime (outside temperature 95°F) I did some temporary fixes to address the air conditioner exhaust duct failure. The last duct repair was done in March. Late afternoon a small thunderstorm came through with heavy rain (0.25"). After sunset I and a friend (thanks!) did a more permanent duct repair by pinning the duct to the POD bay wall and taping it over. And with local air temperatures already reaching to near 100°F during the current extreme heat warnings, this fix was definitely necessary.

On Friday, 10 July, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 2001 MST. With sunset having occurred at 1933 MST, I knew the twilight sky would be too bright to see the rocket. (The best viewing times are for launches that occur 60-90 minutes after sunset here.) The sky was hazy as well, making viewing more difficult. My iPhone 15 Pro Max did manage to get the rocket during powered flight even though I could not see it with my eye. After the sky was dark enough, the rocket exhaust contrail became visible with the planet Venus making the scene a nice view.

2006 MST: Camera app (2X lens)


2007 MST: Camera app (5X lens)


2042 MST: Camera app (Night Mode, 3 seconds, 2X lens)

Late Saturday afternoon, 11 July, a severe thunderstorm came through with nearly continuous lightning and thunder, wind, and sheets of rain. Received over an inch of rain in the first 30 minutes from the storm (storm total was 1.26"). The Oracle Fire Department had to do three water rescues, very unusual for here. There was some wind damage in Oracle.

Click to view video

Late Sunday afternoon, 12 July, there were storms in the area, but not as strong as the previous day. Only got 0.02" rain here. This was a severe thunderstorm to the west.

About midnight had another 0.03" rain. At sunrise on Monday, 13 July, I saw this beautiful double rainbow. Monsoon Season thunderstorms bring more than rain to Southeast Arizona. It displays these types of rainbows!

Click or tap on image for larger version

Monday afternoon had some brief light showers (0.05"). Wednesday, 15 July, had another Monsoon thunderstorm (0.42" rain in 15 minutes with a storm total of 0.75"). Had some light rain (0.03") Friday, 17 July. On Saturday, 18 July, had some brief periods of light rain (0.07"). Before sunrise, Monday, 20 July, had some light rain (0.02"). Shortly after sunset a strong rainshower came through. Total rain for the day was 0.6". Tuesday, 21 July, there was a strong thunderstorm to the north but only received 0.01" rain here. Late afternoon on Friday, 24 July, there was a severe thunderstorm a few miles south of Cassiopeia Observatory. Only received 0.05" rain here. Saturday evening, 25 July, there was a thunderstorm south of Oracle that had nearly continuous lightning for a couple of hours. Unfortunately, terrain blocked the view so I did no lightning phototgraphy. Before midnight received 0.1" rain.

Friday night, 31 July, there was another SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. Sunset was at 1922 MST and the launch at 2008 MST.

2011 MST: Camera app (5X lens)


2012 MST: Camera app (5X lens)


2012 MST: Camera app (5X lens)


2012 MST: Camera app (5X lens)


2013 MST: Camera app (2X lens)


2014 MST: Camera app (5X lens)


2014 MST: Camera app (2X lens)

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