Editing 3253: Sunbeam

{{comic
| number    = 3253
| date      = June 1, 2026
| title     = Sunbeam
| image     = sunbeam_2x.png
| imagesize = 398x347px
| noexpand  = true
| titletext = While weather control is typically thought of as a superpower, the unconscious ability of astronomers and astrophotographers to summon clouds is more properly classified as a curse.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created BY A TABLE SOON TO BE LIT BY THE SUN. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

{{w|Astrophotography}} is the act of taking pictures of very distant objects. Often these are celestial ones, or other star-related phenomena such as nebulae and galaxies, but planets, moons and even spacecraft may photographed either in isolation or in conjunction with other objects along roughly the same line of sight.

In order to tae such photos, one needs to know where things are in the sky, especially when the Sun is in the sky and needs to be specifically accounted for to either ensure that it is aimed away from or is a [[2463: Astrophotography|deliberate part of the intended shot]]. The prospective movement of the various objects across the sky (both intended subjects of the photograph and anything that gets in the way) might be intensely studied beforehand, e.g. to ensure that the Moon will rise above a suitable part of the horizon (by working out when and where the photograph should be taken from) or to avoid disappointment in trying to obtain a desired eclipse-orientated image.

Since all natural celestial objects move in predictabe ways across the sky (and the movements of satellites can be worked out at least given knowledge of any of their most recent manoevering) astrophotographers possess an ability that the comic calls an "extremely minor superpower". In this case, it is [[Cueball]] who is pointing out that the passage of the Sun across the sky will move the sunbeams from a certain window across the floor of the room to later illuminate a given table. Though normally it might be considered useful to see by, such direct sunlight would probably be considered problematic, in this case, making the indicated table subject to excessive heat and/or light for comfort, whereas the table currently beyond the beams of sunlight would be a perfectly acceptable place to sit and would remain so.

However, regular people could easily determine where the sun will fall as well, making its claims as a 'superpower' questionable at best, as (assuming that this venue is in the northern hemisphere, with a southerly-facing window) most people will be able to work out the consequences of the changing position of the Sun (w.r.t. the spinning Earth) to a similarly useful degree. Though a layperson might have more doubts about how the changes in the sunbeam's declination might change matters, depending upon the (local) time of day and what season of the year this is happening. Cueball, however, has enough intimate knowlege through his astrophotographic hobby/work to be usefully definite about how things will progress. Hence it's being called a very minor superpower.

The title text talks about another minor "superpower", that astrophotographers have, which makes clouds always seem to show up in front of the night sky. Because this "ability" is actually just coincidence,{{Citation needed}} that only appears causal to some, as well as that it interferes with their work, by ruining their photos, the title text more accurately classifies it as {{tvtropes|BlessedWithSuck|a curse}}, which is why the rest of the comic describes astrophotographers having only one "actual" superpower.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
:[Cueball, Megan, and White Hat are in a large dark room, presumably a restaurant, with two tables and a large window, with 4 panels and a topsection. The window is casting a large sunbeam between the two tables.]
:Cueball: Let's take the far table. 
:Cueball: The closer one will be in the sun soon.
:[Caption below the panel:] 
:Astrophotography gives you exactly one extremely minor superpower.
{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Photography]]