RETURN OF CHAMPIONS -
COSMOPOETRY TOURNAMENTS
FOR GLOBAL ASTRONOMY MONTH 2021 -
BOOK IV of
COSMOPOETRY DIARY IN THE PANDEMIC
CHAPTER III (episodes 41-60)


Comments and English translations from Romanian by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe
Design: Florin Alexandru Stancu

41

GAM’S START BEFORE SUNRISE
(Bucharest, morning of April 1, 2021)
Astro-photo-poem by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

A new slalom of
Moon among the stars from which
I chose Arcturus











42

EMAIL TOURNAMENT WITH VALENTIN GRIGORE

Astral news from Dambovita County…

CHALLENGE
By Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

The world’s beauty
challenges you to discern between
pain and happiness

TRANSITION TO GAM 2021
Astro-photo-poem by Valentin Grigore

The Moon - a silent witness of history -,
a sundog - a splash of color at sunrise -,
the sky remaining fascinating
above the urban agglomeration,
spring in heaven and earth,
colors of sunset in the first day
of Global Astronomy Month,
the International Space Station flying in the evening
over a flowering garden…
(Does the scent of flowers get up there?)















43

SURROUNDED BY BEAUTY, ALPHA AURIGAE BECAME BLUE
(Bucharest, April 1, 2021)
Astro-photo-poem by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

New hunt of blossoms -
sunset with light pillar; then
target: Capella.











44

LIVE TOURNAMENT WITH ION(UT) MORARU



On April 1, 2021 (the first day of GAM 2021)
I met the longest serving author of astro-art-poetry (since 1999)
in the SARM cosmopoetry/movement, Ion(ut) Moraru,
for a tournament in the Youth Park in Bucharest,
where we were caressed by the inspirational view
of the Military Astronomical Observatory -
made in 1895 and admired by King Carol I.

A SPECIAL OBSERVATORY
By Ion(ut) Moraru

I went back many years in time
and met a professor who told me about the soul of the planets.
A colleague of mine used a fan to play with torrid Mercury,
another fellow washed volcanic Venus with water (not with sulfuric acid).
I looked through the telescope too, seeing the Earth
and intensifying its continental green and oceanic blue.
I put some water in the lunar seas (against warmth, of course).
I turned Mars from red into yellow
and threw away more bacteria on Mons Olympus.
We visited the belt of asteroids between Mars and Jupiter
and fought with the remains of a planet.
We all ran to Jupiter to glide on its multicolored bands.
I took Saturn's rings and put them on the teacher's neck.
We rolled on the frozen giant planets Uranus and Neptune.

We also found Galileo’s lunette on the terrace,
even he appeared immediately and showed us
the four large satellites of Jupiter
with which he changed the world.



VIEW OF THE KING’S OBSERVATORY
(Bucharest, April 1, 2021)
Astro-photo-poem by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

Watching the stars
at the observatory -
any man is a king









45

SIRIUS AT THE OPENING OF GAM 2021
Astro-photo-poem by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

Sirius, the greatest star,
was red for Greek personalities (such us Claudius Ptolemy),
blue for Roman personalities,
white for ancient Chinese…
in fact, a binary star colored by mirages…

On April 1, 2021,
among the alternative electric lights of
the Children’s World Park in Bucharest,
I was the witness of...
a Sirius Blossom Festival!











46

EMAIL TOURNAMENT WITH TIT TIHON

A former Romanian national astropoetry laureate
had a long career as a teacher in the town of Roman,
completed with activities of popularizer of astronomy
and coach for the young participants at the astronomy olympiads.
After retirement, he went to Canada to visit his daughter,
but was caught by the pandemic,
so he has stayed there until today.
From there he enthusiastically participated in this project.

STILL LOOKING
By Tit Tihon

Newton looked for the gravity of the fallen apple
While Einstein's Cross was crucified
Among the thousands of galaxies in the universe
Which are lost in dark matter

The theologian Lacaille is still looking for a comet
Which writhes like a mountain spring
He smiles at the planet wandering day by day
Among the drops of splashes in the sun

And I'm looking for a bird in its flight in the sky
To bring me longing for the Bird of Paradise
Where I can find the ancient scholars
And the endless moments in their helplessness

HALO
(Bucharest, April 2, 2021)
Astro-photo-poem by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

Heavenly bodies -
watching them we crown the world
and halo the sky









47

NEAR THE SAINT GEORGE CHURCH
(Bucharest, April 2, 2021)
Astro-photo-poem by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

A solar tangent arc made me go
to Bucharest’s Prime Kilometer -
Saint George’s Church,
made by the Romanian national martyr Constantin Brancoveanu
around 1700.

That arc became a solar halo there,
or rather the aura of a saint.









48

NEAR THE UNIVERSITY OF BUCHAREST
(Bucharest, April 2, 2021)
Astro-photo-poem by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

A solar halo over the University of Bucharest
made me shout:
“Long live the university.
Blessed be
the chair of astronomy!”









49

GREAT HALO
(Bucharest, April 2, 2021)
Astro-photo-poem by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

Near the Bucharest Institute of Architecture
I saw a solar halo made by even
the Architect of the Universe.









50

IN THE MILTARI RESIDENCE
(Bucharest, April 2, 2021)
Astro-photo-poem by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

I followed a solar halo and,
for the first time during the pandemic,
I got out of Bucharest,
in an urban satellite called the Militari Residence.

When I turned back,
I stopped a little next to
the National Institute of Aero-Spatial Research,
where an airplane became a rocket
flying to the Sun
that became a nebula.















51

QUARANTINE SADNESS
(Bucharest, April 2, 2021)
Astro-photo-poem by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

Between sunset and morning moon,
sad Sirius asked me from my balcony:
“Why don’t you go out again
to play with me?”







52

EMAIL TOURNAMENT WITH DOMINIC DIAMANT

A former Romanian national astropoetry laureate
(age 86, participant in SARM’s Cosmopoetry Festival
since its first edition, in 1996),
who lives in Bucharest,
was glad to participate in this project….

COSMOS
By Dominic Diamant

The Cosmos, in the acceptance of mortals,
represents an abstract, infinite and inextricable notion
or a harmonious universe without limits,
more comprehensive than anything imaginable,
organized according to the laws beyond our comprehension,
passed by myriads of galaxies and constellations.

Regardless of their age, magnitude and brilliance.
you can lose your mind
just thinking about such a phantasmagoric miracle.

But the impossibility of knowing and circumscribing it exhaustively
does not intimidate scientists and researchers…
and the evolution of humanity, no matter how troubled,
remains bold and worthy of admiration.

LIMITED UNIVERSE
(Bucharest, April 3, 2021)
Astro-photo-poem by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

Clouds, moon, effects of
light and sunrise - it’s just my
Balcony Cosmos











53

ONE APRIL MORNING
(Bucharest, April 3, 2021)
Astro-photo-poem by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

On a blessed morning,
Although I am not wise,
I found out just
Another paradise.





















54

EMAIL TOURNAMENT WITH IULIAN IONESCU

My favourite cousin (who lives in the town of Braila)
is an engineer with philosophic valences…

SEARCHING MY GALAXY
By Iulian Ionescu

I will search my galaxy,
my library of ideas
to find out what escapes the gravity
of two conformist
and complicit black holes…
I will understand that the stars
are our former, present
and future souls.

CONNECTION
(Bucharest, April 3, 2021)
Astro-photo-poem by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

I wonder how many
people born in Virgo
watch the star Spica



55

THE IMAGINATIVE CLOUD
(Bucharest, April 4, 2021)
Astro-photo-poem by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

Rainy weather,
so I invoked the spring again.

A kind cloud tried
to improve the sky scenery
and simulated the Horsehead Nebula.









56

ANOTHER FINE MORNING
(Bucharest, April 5, 2021)
Astro-photo-poem by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

The Morning Moon… smaller
and smaller, while the Sun…
brighter and brighter









57

TO A MUSE CALLED ANTONIA
(Bucharest, April 5, 2021)
Astro-photo-poem by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

Oh, perhaps this is
just another dimension.
Dramatic sunset!



















58

EMAIL TOURNAMENT WITH DANUT IONESCU

A former Bucharestian engineer and popularizer of astronomy,
who edited the new edition of the magazine “Orion” (1990-1993)
and realized the “Contact Astronomic” Radio Show (1993-1997),
emigrated to New Zealand in the 2000s,
where he has become our best collaborator and friend
from the southern hemisphere…

TO A FAR FRIEND
By Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

My friend from the
southern hemisphere,
is the Sun the same over there?

THE SUN IN THE SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE
Astro-photo-poem by Danut Ionescu

It’s the same entity, yes,
But with another headdress.

The Sun, Auckland 2015-03-14 at 01:14 UTC or 14:10 NZD Time.
AR 2297.Lunt 152 H-alpha with B1800,
2x Barlow lens and camera Flea2
on Zeiss 50cm telescope property of
Auckland Stardome Observatory and Planetarium.



59

EMAIL TOURNAMENT WITH TIT TIHON

Another tournament with the former
Romanian national astropoetry laureate,
now in Canada…

PANDEMIC SPRING MOON
By Tit Tihon

Spring Moon, revered today by astronomers,
Multicolored comet that illuminates on Earth in rainbows
The Global Astronomy Month for people
The Newton telescope opens its eyepiece again

Spring sends you a greeting with a mask today
Spring Moon, revered by cosmopoetry,
Galaxies work to create a clone planet
The earthlings will receive the carpet with white water lilies

Dark matter also darkened the horizons
Spring Moon, revered by astropoets,
The meteor garden prepares a divine invasion
Living light for beds and oxygen tubes in hospitals

The asteroid belt that was once a planet
Spring Moon and your legacies
The story of the garden with four rivers
A holy existence of time forgotten by times

REPEATABILITY
(Bucharest, March 20, 2021)
Astro-photo-poem by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

If I can’t catch the
Full Moon I’m glad I can
recover it next month



60

EMAIL TOURNAMENT WITH IULIAN OLARU

Born in Constanta County
(15 centuries after Dionysius Exiguus, the founder of Christian chronology),
former leader of the Bucharest SARM Branch,
editor of the mini-magazine “Spy Glass”
and multiple Romanian national astrohaiku laureate.
Now an IT specialist in Iasi
who wrote astrohaiku again!

BLOSSOMS
By Iulian Olaru

The smile of a
blossom - its astral face
an enchantment

Every time the Sun
brings light… and sometimes the blossoms
bring emotion

QUESTION AND ANSWER
(Bucharest, April 5, 2021)
Astro-photo-haiku by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

A question: with or
without sun? An answer: with
or without blossoms?







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