Interstellar visitor

 

A significant event in the sky has been happening this year. In June 2025 an interstellar object approached our solar system. This was given the name 3I Atlas, and is officially classed as a comet. While many comets have passed, this particular "comet" is different. Firstly it comes from another star system. An interstellar comet is actually a very new or rare guest appearance. 

It's speed is extremely fast as it's travelling up to 60km per second. The object is the size of a city but larger than Mount Everest. It's hyperbola and doesn't have a solar orbit. This object is metallic with nickel emissions, iron and carbon dioxide. Scientists such as Avi Loeb believes 3I Atlas could be artificial. He said that the interstellar comet might be a spaceship from an alien star!  

The object from interstellar space has many people interested. There are some fantastic ideas about what it could be, and there's mundane explanations about it too. Some believe it's a UFO, while others think it's just a natural piece of rock. The comet has passed planets and journeyed around our sun. It's a glowing white comet that altered colours and appears even rainbow! It's even sent a signal to our moon, and in response, the moon answered the call. This is definitely exciting!

We have just experienced a deep interstellar shining comet dancing into our neighbourhood star system, while then checking on the planets. The only other known recorded interstellar objects we've had come to our solar system has been 1I/Oumuamua in 2017 and 2I/Borisov in 2019. This doesn't mean there wasn't any before, but we've now got the technology to find it. 3I Atlas is here for Yule! 

Storm Valkyrie

Halloween and Vikings

 Many have asked why some people who follow an old Norse spiritual path recognise Halloween. My answer is that we create our own traditions from enjoying Halloween growing up, and then choosing a spiritual and religious equation. Some turn their backs on Halloween and link it to both their childhoods and towards a different belief. I personally recognise the time of year as lowering of the veil. It doesn't matter if Heathens and Odinists still love Halloween. There is a similar theme across old pre-Christian religions. 

Shadow Girl says: The Norse people had a different type of celebration to Samhain/Halloween but can still be recognised as spooky. There was a big rite called Alfablot, which means "Sacrifice to the elves". People would give food offerings to ghosts and nature spirits. They respected the spirits of the dead and thanked their ancestors for giving them life, so they honoured ancestral dead and believed they visited this time of year. Much food was prepared and a place was reserved at the table for the spirits. There were more rites including Disablot and Winter Nights, both of which celebrated spirits. 

Storm Valkyrie responds: Disablot was another celebration this Autumn that honoured certain magical female spirits called the Disir, often with food such as cakes and drinking mead. Some celebrated this during mid-October and it lasted three nights, but others made a Spring time version called Disting. There is also Winter Nights, or Vetrnaetr, who saw this time of year as the very start of winter. It was very big on feasts and festivities. It involved much eating and drinking, as well as respect towards the dead, as they celebrated spirits and gave thanks to the gods. Both Spring and Autumn equinoxes have seasons of ancestral worship and beliefs in spirits/ghosts and the paranormal becoming more stronger. Today we've got Halloween, or Samhain, and others like Day of the Dead during Autumn. And then in Spring there is Beltane, Walpugis Night and Easter. 

Shadow Girl: Ancient people recognised the two equinoxes as a period of equal hours, day and night, so they found this time important to celebrate the spirits. It's seen as a special time for balance, almost the two different equinoxes are periods in time that are mirrors of one another. Dark and Light. 

Storm Valkyrie: It's believed to connect to rebirth with the sun itself changing. In Greek mythology, the goddess Persephone returns to the Underworld and we experience Autumn, then Winter. When she returns to the Earth again, Spring appears and then Summer. It's seen as a balance and an explanation for the shifting seasons. Also this was extremely important in agriculture, when farmers planted their crops. Autumn has always been a time of gathering food for the winter months ahead. Be well and enjoy!

Storm Valkyrie and Shadow Girl

Halloween animals

 Scary paranormal creatures and ghosts are one thing. Nature itself has made some creepy animals much associated with the season of Halloween/Samhain. Here are some of these animals that Halloween wouldn't be without.

Black cats, most often associated with Halloween and appears as a shadowy feline with witchcraft links. The cutest and friendliest, although the Halloween black cat is viewed as a symbol of bad luck. So sad this time of year many black cats are left abandoned. It goes back to centuries of superstition that black cats are magical and many superstitious people believed they're are the familiars of witches. This means people thought black cats are not natural but are witches and demons in disguise. 

Our view on this: Black cats are awesome. They'll get rid of vermin in your house. Black cats don't fear creepy crawlies either. These cats are guardians of the home and they can protect people from evil spirits. Stop being cruel to cats and give them a decent loving home. They're a blessing. Once upon a time, cats were favourites and worshipped in ancient Egypt. The goddess Freyja loves cats. 

Spiders, the one thing I fear the most while sat down with tea and a book, when a spider scurries along the floor and gives me the shock of my life. I honestly have arachnophobia, mainly because I grew up in a household with a warm conservatory, greenhouse and second bathroom, which attracted great big spiders! I understand why spiders are a Halloween beastie. 

Shadow Girl's view: Spiders are more afraid of you than you are afraid of them. You're size compared to a spider is enormous. You're the size of a mountain and a spider regards you as a giant. Without spiders, there would be much more terrible bugs infesting everywhere causing problems such as disease and famine. Spiders are a very important part of nature as it's part of the stable food chain.

Wolves are often associated with Halloween and night time. Mainly the full moon itself, and Autumn season is when it gets darker so nights are longer, bringing with it fears of the wilderness outside. In centuries passed, people even in the British Isles hid indoors because packs of wolves used to howl. This terrifies people even now. And not forgetting werewolves that are supernatural creatures associated with the full moon, and these are always connected to Halloween.

Our view: Wolves are much more active during Autumn season because of their prey having certain migration changes. This is when wolf pups have grown bigger and joining the adults for hunting. It's when wolves are out preparing for winter. 

Ravens are very much associated with Halloween. Most ravens as well as crows are believed to be bad luck omens, connected to magic and death. Often portrayed as being in graveyards, beside skulls and ghosts, this imagery of them is because of superstition and folklore. 

Our view: Ravens and crows are very intelligent and they have good memory. These are scavengers and they eat carrion. Plenty of gothic works of fiction made about ravens and crows link them with the supernatural. They can recognise individual people and they remember who was nice to them. Ravens are also able to be trained to speak. We love these birds.

Bats are so Halloween and many believe these are vampires turned into bats. It's believed that they're blood drinkers and some still think bats are blind. Associated with vampires and also the night. Bats are often out at night, which superstitious people believe connects them to vampires. 

Our view: Bats are nocturnal creatures and active only at night. During Samhain and Bonfire night, the fires attracted insects that also drew in bats who hunt them. Many bats are mostly active during autumn months when they prepare for their winter hibernation. European explorers in South America stumbled upon vampire bats who fed on blood of animals. The majority of bat species are insectivores and herbivores who mostly eat fruit.   

Storm Valkyrie and Shadow Girl