Milky Way Time-Lapse with a Surprise: A Meteor Exploding in Atmosphere

A Milky Way time-lapse with an unexpected surprise. A meteor exploding while entering the atmosphere. Not something you can get on video by planning it, though there are two photographers lucky enough to capture it.

The video above was made by Wes Eisenhauer in South Dakota in mid-September, using a Canon EOS 5D Mark II and a 16-35mm lens.

Milky Way Time-Lapse

Eisenhauer was not the only lucky photographer to capture this very meteor explosion. Ben Lewis shot the video below in Iowa using a Canon EOS 6D and 35mm lens.

A meteor exploding in the atmosphere is called a “bolide fireball”, more about it at the American Meteor Society.

[via PetaPixel]

Canon EF-S 24mm f/2.8 STM Pancake Lens Shipping

24

Canon’s EF-S 24mm f/2.8 STM pancake lens is shipping from for $149 at AmazonB&H Photo | Adorama

  • EF-S Mount Lens/APS-C Format
  • 38mm (35mm Equivalent)
  • One Aspherical Element
  • Optimized Lens Coatings
  • STM AF Motor Supports Movie Servo AF
  • Micro-Stepping Drive Aperture Mechanism
  • Full-Time Manual Focus Override
  • Rounded 7-Blade Diaphragm
  • Slim Design Measures Less Than 1″-Thick

The EF-S 24mm f/2.8 STM was announced in September 2014.

Save up to $255 on Select Refurbished PowerShot Cameras (and Black Friday deals)

Black Friday

The Canon Store has 3 refurbished Powershot cameras on sale with high discounts.

These deals are very good. The G1 X for $329.99, the SX280 HS for $129.99, and the ELPH 520 HS for $79.99! These cams are refurbished but they are sold by Canon itself. Won’t last for long.

There is more. Amazon US is continuously updating the early Black Friday camera page. Looking for other deals? Check the general Amazon Black Friday page.

Black Friday

Canon Starts an Innovation Lab in Canada

Canon

Canon unwrapped a new innovation lab in in the Communitech Hub in Waterloo Region, Canada. Ted Egawa, President of Canon Canada, was interviewed by Communitech Canada. An excerpt from the interview (which doesn’t tell that much):

Q – Canon is already one of the world’s most innovative companies when it comes to the number of patents it produces. Why does it need an innovation lab?

A – With the advancement of technology, especially in the mobile area, the industry has changed a lot, and us being able to produce a quality product is a different story; how to utilize this mobile environment […]

Q – As one of the world’s most familiar brands, Canon still means cameras to most people. How is that changing, and what do you want Canon to mean to people in the future?

A – Canon will continue to produce quality products for the end users, and this effort of us being here, hopefully, will expand our opportunity to better use images for the end user. Not the hardware or device; the device is providing the tool to capture the images. However, because of this mobile technology, there are vastly different uses, or a variety of uses, that the user can enjoy.

By being here, we would learn a lot and provide the opportunity for us to learn a lot about how images are being utilized. By learning how images are being utilized, it will give us the opportunity to think better about not only product, but also the services that we can provide to the end user.

Canon opening an innovation lab sounds pretty good to me.

The interview can be read at Communitech.

Canon Contributes to Production of Primary Mirror for TMT Extremely Large Telescope

TMT Extremely Large Telescope
Conceptual image of the completed TMT (courtesy of the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan)

Canon press release:

Canon technologies contribute to production of primary mirror used in TMT extremely large telescope

TOKYO, November 13, 2014—Canon Inc. announced today that the Company has been entrusted with the responsibility of processing the 30-meter-diameter multi-segment primary mirror to be incorporated in the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) currently under construction near the summit of Mauna Kea, Hawaii.

The creation of the TMT, a next-generation extremely large telescope, is being made possible through the cooperative efforts of Japan and four other countries. Construction of the telescope began in 2014 with completion scheduled for the early 2020s. Japan will handle the processing of approximately 30% of the 492 segments (574 when including replacement segments) that make up the TMT’s primary mirror. Of the processing being handled by the team from Japan, Canon is currently responsible for grinding 26 segments and has already begun work.

The TMT’s primary mirror will comprise an array of 492 hexagonal segments, each of which measures 1.44 meters diagonally with a thickness of 45 millimeters. The segments will be closely arranged, separated by gaps measuring only 2.5 millimeters wide, to create the 30-meter-diameter primary mirror. The primary mirror’s construction requires the production of six each (seven when including replacement segments) of the 82 uniquely shaped segments used to create the mirror.

Click here to open the rest of the article