UPDATE:  Solved by Hugo at 3:34 CDT

Did I say I was “back”?  I have to admit, I seriously miscalculated with that statement, and Karma got me.  Let’s try this one more time:  I’m here today, with a nice little riddle for you, and I’m very pleased to be able to welcome in October with you.  Fall is my favorite season.  You rarely smell wood smoke or burning leaves anymore, but those two smells have a strong psychological impact to most people of my generation.

Being a Pacific NorthWesterner by birth, a Coloradoan by choice and by love, and a Texan by default, I’ve known some interesting Autumns and Winters.  I’ve come to respect the Texas storms.  Let me tell you, when Texas decides to cut loose with a storm, it knows how to do it correctly.  For waking up and finding yourself snowed-in, Colorado gets my vote… although I have to admit to being snowed-in in western Washington (oh no, it NEVER snows in Whatcom County).  You won’t often find yourself surrounded by deep snow in Texas, well, okay, MOST of Texas, but you will find yourself iced-in.  It’s like being in a deep freeze, and nobody is going anywhere.  Nobody.

It’s riddle time now, but let me know your favorite season, and why you like it.  Now, let me turn the music up and see if I can lead you down the wrong path.  Don’t trip over a red herring, okay?

Earth at night. This image was shamelessly stolen from the Dark Sky project, Globe at Night.

This is the 11th.

If it had been around, our ancestors would have seen it.

When it’s done, it won’t be done.

As a proud member of the scientific community, I use this image on some of my scarier memos. Salud.

We study this intensely.

We’ve been studying it for almost 11 years.

Through this, we’ve found we probably shouldn’t try to send a manned mission to Mars yet.

Think “dawn”; think “star”.

This isn’t as large as we thought it would be.

This is NOT a vehicle, so get your minds off spaceships.

*heavy sigh* it's a SLIDE RULE!!

There you have it.  Not a terribly difficult riddle (Tom and save those for the bonus riddles), but maybe enough to make you pause on your daily round and direct your mind to the massive infinity hanging over your head.  Look up.