We drove up to the Griffith Observatory. The line of parked cars on both sides of the street extended for a VERY long way up the giant hill. I drove to the top to let everyone off then resigned myself to a remote parking place and a long walk back... but just as I pulled away, a car pulled out and I got an incredibly close spot in the parking lot. Whew! I quickly joined everyone at the city overlook.

A thick haze rested over the city.

The Hollywood Sign is situated on Mount Lee in the Hollywood Hills area of the Santa Monica Mountains. The 45-foot-tall word was originally created in 1923 as an advertisement for a local real estate development.

In 1932, a 24-year old actress, Millicent Lilian 'Peg' Entwistle, jumped to her death from the H. Apparently there is soon to be a movie made of her life.

The Griffith Observatory

Johannes Kepler (1571- 1630, a German mathematician, astronomer and astrologer) and Galileo Galilei (1564 - 1642, an Italian physicist, mathematician, astronomer, philosopher and the "father of modern science")

Griffith J. Griffith... really? Who names their kid that?!

In 1896, Colonel Griffith J. Griffith donated this land to the City of Los Angeles. In his will, he also donated funds to build an observatory, exhibit hall and planetarium. His objective was to make astronomy accessible by the public, as opposed to the prevailing idea that observatories should be located on remote mountaintops and restricted to scientists.

Construction on the observatory began in 1933 as a Works Progress Administration and was officially opened in 1935. Admission has always been free. During World War II, the planetarium was used to train pilots in celestial navigation and again in the 1960's to train Apollo astronauts for the first lunar missions.

We entered into the central rotunda which had a giant pendulum hanging from a tall, highly-decorated ceiling.

In the overhead mural, 1930's painter Hugo Ballin illustrated the early stories and myths people used to understand what they saw in the sky.

Below that were famous figures and images of science.

The Foucault Pendulum was invented in 1851. It gave the first direct proof that the earth rotates on its axis. The observatory pendulum is a 240-pound brass sphere suspended from a 40-foot steel wire. Once started, it continues to swing in the same direction regardless of what the earth does. Every 10 minutes or so the pendulum knocks over a peg... but it isn't the pendulum that has moved... the rotating earth has moved the peg into the path of the swinging pendulum.

Looking into the pit

At the poles, it takes 24 hours for a complete circle; at the equator, there is no shift and no pegs would be knocked over; here, it takes just over 42 hours for a full circle.

The many exhibits

In this short exhibit movie, holographic-looking Roman citizens use the public sundial at the Temple of Apollo.

A Tesla coil can create an extremely powerful electrical field. It was invented by Nikola Tesla around 1891. This one was built in 1910 by Earle Ovington and donated to the observatory in 1937.

Kids get to learn about science.

While we were walking around the exhibits, the upcoming planetarium show was announced. We couldn't resist. We bought tickets and went outside to stand in line. Eventually we were led inside.

Another view of the haze. I had to wonder if it was due to a fire.

The mountains were barely visible.

The observatory, with one of the biggest domes in the world, continues an over 70-year tradition of combining spectacular planetarium graphics with a live person who interacts with the audience... with enthusiasm, jokes and information. He walked out swinging a dim lantern and told us of old Viking stories and the aurora borealis.

The Vikings believed the northern lights were Valkyries, female warrior spirits who descended from heaven to carry fallen heroes from the battlefield to Valhalla, the palace of the gods.

The graphics were incredible! We were shown what the skies looked like in the far, cold north... and the low sun during the peak of summer and the dim light in the dead of winter. It was a mystical environment that could make anyone believe in anything! We flew across the landscape (so intense I almost got a bit of motion sickness!)... then soared up into the clouds to Valhalla, far above the earth. We went to (and through) the sun to witness the burst of a solar flare... then followed it as it hurled toward earth, was deflected by the earth's magnetic field and resulted in the auroras (borealis and australis). Very, very nicely done!

Elmer Fudd's "Kill da wabbit" song... er... I mean Richard Wagner's "Ride of the Valkyries" accompanied the incredible show.

The 'Light' refers to the aurora borealis. The image of the ring refers to Richard Wagner's four operas "Der Ring des Nibelungen" (The Ring of the Nibelung) which include the "Ride of the Valkyries."

The Nibelungs were the royal family of the Burgundians, a Germanic tribe that settled in the Rhine Valley in the early 5th century. The Nibelungenlied (Song of the Nibelungs) is an epic poem that tells about Siegfried, a prince who kills a dragon but is later murdered and his treasure is thrown into the Rhine. In some German texts, 'Nibelung' refers more to the king of these people or one of the original owners of that vast treasure, more specifically a dwarf named Alberich. The ring is one he fashions from the Rhine Gold that has immense power. The title therefore can also be translated as "Alberich's Ring"or "The Ring of the Dwarf."

The Vikings thought they lived in a land caught between fire and ice.

Sarah had to get back so we didn't get a chance to explore the entire downstairs. We dropped her off home then hit the freeways at 5:15... right in time for rush hour. The 5 - 6 lane freeways were completely full. We went north with the hopes of skirting LA but it was still pretty bad.

A parting glance back at the observatory past a large sundial

Cars still lined the street for miles.

Traffic lights on the freeway onramp attempted to stagger the flow of cars getting on.

It is legal in California for motorcycles to split lanes.

Metro Rail consists of two subway lines and four light rail lines. It began service in 1990.

Makes you wonder why they came up with that exact number