- The Two-Steppe Natural Area Preserve (dnr.wa.gov)
This 394 acre preserve contains the largest remaining area of high-quality shrub-grassland ecosystems in the northwest portion of the Columbia Basin. Situated in a landscape dominated by agricultural fields, the site also provides an important refuge for birds, such as the sage sparrow and sage thrasher, that are dependent on these shrub-steppe habitats.
- Betelgeuse (Wikipedia)
Betelgeuse is a red supergiant star of spectral type M1-2 and one of the largest visible to the naked eye. It is usually the tenth-brightest star in the night sky and, after Rigel, the second-brightest in the constellation of Orion. It is a distinctly reddish, semiregular variable star whose apparent magnitude, varying between +0.0 and +1.6, has the widest range displayed by any first-magnitude star. At near-infrared wavelengths, Betelgeuse is the brightest star in the night sky. Its Bayer designation is α Orionis, Latinised to Alpha Orionis and abbreviated Alpha Ori or α Ori.