Time 22:10.
Distance 239,026 miles.
First quarter phase.
230 degrees SW compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 19.5 degrees.
Monday, 23 July 2018
Moon 19th July 2018
19th July - Apollo 11 Lunar orbiter goes into lunar orbit, but it was behind the Moon so we couldn't have seen it!
Time 22:10.
Distance 239,026 miles.
First quarter phase.
230 degrees SW compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 19.5 degrees.
Time 22:10.
Distance 239,026 miles.
First quarter phase.
230 degrees SW compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 19.5 degrees.
Moon 18th July 2018
*** 1 0 0 t h P O S T ***
18th July - 49 years ago today, Apollo 11 astronauts Armstrong and Aldrin put on their spacesuits and climbed through the docking tunnel from the Columbia Command Module to the Eagle Lunar Module.
Time 22:05.
Distance 235,292 miles.
Waxing crescent phase.
240 degrees SW compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 18.5 degrees.
18th July - 49 years ago today, Apollo 11 astronauts Armstrong and Aldrin put on their spacesuits and climbed through the docking tunnel from the Columbia Command Module to the Eagle Lunar Module.
Time 22:05.
Distance 235,292 miles.
Waxing crescent phase.
240 degrees SW compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 18.5 degrees.
Saturday, 23 June 2018
Friday 22nd June 2018 (Jupiter)
You can still easily see Jupiter now - here it is as a small, sharp dot on the left-hand side of the photo. But when you zoom it in, you can also see a faint, fuzzy, grey dot. Perhaps it's Callisto? Or Ganymede? Or Europa? Or even Io?
Time 22:15.
Distance 242,106 miles.
Waxing gibbous phase.
200 degrees S compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 27.9 degrees.
Friday 22nd June 2018
Today, Copernicus is right on the terminator!
Copernicus is named after the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus. However, it previously had lots of different names: Carthusia (after the Chartreuse Mountains), Phillipi IV (after Philip IV of Spain), Etna M. (after Mount Etna), and has since been nicknamed "The Monarch of the Moon"!
Time 22:15.
Distance 242,106 miles.
Waxing gibbous phase.
200 degrees S compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 27.9 degrees.
Thursday 21st June 2018
See the Moon on the Summer Solstice!
Does the Moon have a solstice, a longest/shortest day?
It was tricky to work out but I think the answer is "yes", but it's a bit more complicated than an Earth's longest/shortest day!
If you were standing on the Moon and the time it takes for the Sun to go away and come back to the same place is a day (a synodic day), than your day would average 29.5 Earth days, varying from 29.26 to 29.83 Earth days, a difference of just over 13 hours!
This month, the Moon's is on lunation 1181 and its day will last 29d 7h 05m!
The Moon's longest day this year was the first couple of weeks in January (lunation 1175), lasting 29d 19h 47m.
Time 19:45.
Distance 239,197 miles.
Waxing gibbous phase.
170 degrees S compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 34.2 degrees.
Does the Moon have a solstice, a longest/shortest day?
It was tricky to work out but I think the answer is "yes", but it's a bit more complicated than an Earth's longest/shortest day!
If you were standing on the Moon and the time it takes for the Sun to go away and come back to the same place is a day (a synodic day), than your day would average 29.5 Earth days, varying from 29.26 to 29.83 Earth days, a difference of just over 13 hours!
This month, the Moon's is on lunation 1181 and its day will last 29d 7h 05m!
The Moon's longest day this year was the first couple of weeks in January (lunation 1175), lasting 29d 19h 47m.
Time 19:45.
Distance 239,197 miles.
Waxing gibbous phase.
170 degrees S compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 34.2 degrees.
Sunday, 27 May 2018
Moon 26th May 2018
And this is what the moon itself looked like last night.
There's a program on the BBC at the moment about 'The Last Man on the Moon'.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0b3gd8g
He was Apollo 17 astronaut Gene Cernan, the eleventh and last man on the Moon to date, stepping off the Taurus-Littrow valley on December 14th 1972.
If you were born on December 15th 1972 you would be 45 years old and no one would have been on the moon in your lifetime!
Time 22:20.
Distance 242,644 miles.
Waxing gibbous phase.
170 degrees S compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 27.7 degrees.
There's a program on the BBC at the moment about 'The Last Man on the Moon'.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0b3gd8g
He was Apollo 17 astronaut Gene Cernan, the eleventh and last man on the Moon to date, stepping off the Taurus-Littrow valley on December 14th 1972.
If you were born on December 15th 1972 you would be 45 years old and no one would have been on the moon in your lifetime!
Time 22:20.
Distance 242,644 miles.
Waxing gibbous phase.
170 degrees S compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 27.7 degrees.
Moon 26th May 2018
It's Jupiter again, with the Moon in view.
In the photo, Jupiter looks 17 times smaller than the moon but appears just as bright. But in reality, Jupiter is 42 times bigger than the Moon, and 2250 times further away from the Earth! It just shows how big it is to be able to reflect so much light back!
Time 22:20.
Distance 242,644 miles.
Waxing gibbous phase.
170 degrees S compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 27.7 degrees.
In the photo, Jupiter looks 17 times smaller than the moon but appears just as bright. But in reality, Jupiter is 42 times bigger than the Moon, and 2250 times further away from the Earth! It just shows how big it is to be able to reflect so much light back!
Time 22:20.
Distance 242,644 miles.
Waxing gibbous phase.
170 degrees S compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 27.7 degrees.
Saturday, 26 May 2018
Moon 21st May & Moon 23rd May 2018
In these two photos, the cloud covers the moon but it makes great pictures. However, it gives me a feeling of cold and it reminds me of "wuthering" in 'The Secret Garden' (the book I'm reading), and clouds move and change, and they're not pure greyscale - you get little hints of colour.
(21st May / 23rd May 2018)
Time 21:23 / 22:46.
Distance 230,970 / 235,671 miles.
First quarter / waxing gibbous phase.
225 / 220 degrees SW / SW compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 42.7 / 36.5 degrees.
Monday 30th April 2018
A great full Moon (first photo) but look how bright Jupiter is! It's a great time for seeing Jupiter; the second to fifth photos show it on 30th April, 2nd May, 4th May and 21st May 2018. BUT because it looks so small, it's difficult to get a sharp image with just a normal bridge camera; you need a tripod or something like that to get one!
(30th April 2018)
Time 21:13.
Distance 241,920 miles.
Full moon phase.
115 degrees SE compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 1.3 degrees.
(30th April 2018)
Time 21:13.
Distance 241,920 miles.
Full moon phase.
115 degrees SE compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 1.3 degrees.
Moon 22nd May 2018
These are two Moons spread over 30 minutes with the camera in a fixed
position on a tripod. The Moon hasn't rotated much but it has moved
across the sky and in an arc! This is because the Earth is rotating much
faster than the Moon.
(left / right Moon)
Time 19:17 / 19:54.
Distance 233,274 / 233,274 miles.
First quarter / first quarter phase.
165 / 180 degrees S / S compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 46.6 / 47.2 degrees.
(left / right Moon)
Time 19:17 / 19:54.
Distance 233,274 / 233,274 miles.
First quarter / first quarter phase.
165 / 180 degrees S / S compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 46.6 / 47.2 degrees.
Sunday, 29 April 2018
Thursday 26th April 2018
Only the second Moon this month.
April last year I managed nine posts!
Lots of cloud - look how fuzzy the Moon looks.
Time 21:15.
Distance 235,482 miles.
Waxing gibbous phase.
150 degrees SE compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 37.8 degrees.
April last year I managed nine posts!
Lots of cloud - look how fuzzy the Moon looks.
Time 21:15.
Distance 235,482 miles.
Waxing gibbous phase.
150 degrees SE compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 37.8 degrees.
Wednesday 25th April 2018
I did an experiment to compare:
optical zoom vs. digital zoom!
Optical zoom is supposed to give better detail than digital zoom. However, the picture would be smaller.
If you enlarge the optical zoom picture in Photoshop to the same size as the digital zoom image then the pixels look a lot bigger.
But the optical zoom picture looks more '3D' - the shadows are much clearer.
Perhaps this could be because the digital zoom picture is more sensitive to camera shake. Who knows?
(for both photos)
Time 20:20.
Distance 233,750 miles.
Waxing gibbous phase.
150 degrees SE compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 42.0 degrees.
optical zoom vs. digital zoom!
Optical zoom is supposed to give better detail than digital zoom. However, the picture would be smaller.
If you enlarge the optical zoom picture in Photoshop to the same size as the digital zoom image then the pixels look a lot bigger.
But the optical zoom picture looks more '3D' - the shadows are much clearer.
Perhaps this could be because the digital zoom picture is more sensitive to camera shake. Who knows?
(for both photos)
Time 20:20.
Distance 233,750 miles.
Waxing gibbous phase.
150 degrees SE compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 42.0 degrees.
Sunday, 1 April 2018
1st April 2018
Spring Equinox / Easter
For Easter (spring equinox), I have put together a composite of three moons (25th November, 3rd December and 8th January).
I'm trying to show the old pagan Triple Goddess idea, where waxing moon represented birth, full moon represented life and waning moon represented death/rebirth.
Even back in the neolithic and beyond, people understood there was connection between the Moon and nature. But because they didn't have the science to explain it, they thought the Moon was a sort of spirit.
Their old idea of looking after the Moon and the environment is still important today.
For Easter (spring equinox), I have put together a composite of three moons (25th November, 3rd December and 8th January).
I'm trying to show the old pagan Triple Goddess idea, where waxing moon represented birth, full moon represented life and waning moon represented death/rebirth.
Even back in the neolithic and beyond, people understood there was connection between the Moon and nature. But because they didn't have the science to explain it, they thought the Moon was a sort of spirit.
Their old idea of looking after the Moon and the environment is still important today.
Thursday, 29 March 2018
Monday 26th & Wednesday 28th March 2018
The way the light is falling on the Moon creates shadows that makes
Copernicus look 3D on the 26th but lack of shadow makes it look flat on
the 28th.
Time 19:30 / 20:15.
Distance 229,360 / 230,514 miles.
Waxing gibbous / waxing gibbous phase.
140 degrees SE compass point / 125 degrees SE compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 49.7 / 38.4 degrees.
Time 19:30 / 20:15.
Distance 229,360 / 230,514 miles.
Waxing gibbous / waxing gibbous phase.
140 degrees SE compass point / 125 degrees SE compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 49.7 / 38.4 degrees.
Sunday, 25 March 2018
Sunday 25th March 2018
Six moon sightings March last year but this is only the second this March.
I did see the Moon last week but only briefly and I didn't have my camera.
Time 18:40.
Distance 229,522 miles.
First quarter phase.
140 degrees SE compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 51.8 degrees.
Weather: Partly cloudy and breezy.
Temperature: 8 degrees (feels like 6 degrees).
Humidity: 57%.
Pressure: 1015 mb.
Visibility: Very Good.
Precipitation: 0%.
Wind Speed: 8mph.
Wind Direction: NNW.
I did see the Moon last week but only briefly and I didn't have my camera.
Time 18:40.
Distance 229,522 miles.
First quarter phase.
140 degrees SE compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 51.8 degrees.
Weather: Partly cloudy and breezy.
Temperature: 8 degrees (feels like 6 degrees).
Humidity: 57%.
Pressure: 1015 mb.
Visibility: Very Good.
Precipitation: 0%.
Wind Speed: 8mph.
Wind Direction: NNW.
Tuesday, 13 March 2018
Wednesday 7th March 2018
The only moon so far this month - weather warning - snowy & rainy skies!
A big morning moon.
Time 07:40.
Distance 244,715 miles.
Waning gibbous phase.
225 degrees SW compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 12.2 degrees.
A big morning moon.
Time 07:40.
Distance 244,715 miles.
Waning gibbous phase.
225 degrees SW compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 12.2 degrees.
Friday, 2 March 2018
Moon 28th February 2018
Below zero night Moon.
Time 21:15.
Distance 226,946 miles.
Waxing gibbous phase.
135 degrees SE compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 43.4 degrees.
https://youtu.be/0QTfSGkivCY
Time 21:15.
Distance 226,946 miles.
Waxing gibbous phase.
135 degrees SE compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 43.4 degrees.
https://youtu.be/0QTfSGkivCY
Friday, 9 February 2018
Moon 7th & Moon 8th February 2018
Consecutive morning Moons. Lovely blue sky but still fair detail.
I couldn't see the Falcon Heavy on its test flight though. It's the idea of Elon Musk and his SpaceX company and it has the heaviest payload of any current rocket and he's hoping to do commercial flights at a cost of $1,000/lb ($2,200/kg). What would you like to send into space?
(Wednesday 7th / Thursday 8th)
Time 08:30 / 07:45.
Distance 245,397 / 428,211 miles.
Last quarter / Last quarter phase.
220 degrees S compass point / 200 degrees SW compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 17.3 / 42.7 degrees.
Live stream video here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBr2kKAHN6M
I couldn't see the Falcon Heavy on its test flight though. It's the idea of Elon Musk and his SpaceX company and it has the heaviest payload of any current rocket and he's hoping to do commercial flights at a cost of $1,000/lb ($2,200/kg). What would you like to send into space?
(Wednesday 7th / Thursday 8th)
Time 08:30 / 07:45.
Distance 245,397 / 428,211 miles.
Last quarter / Last quarter phase.
220 degrees S compass point / 200 degrees SW compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 17.3 / 42.7 degrees.
Live stream video here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBr2kKAHN6M
Saturday, 3 February 2018
Moon 31st January & Moon 1st February 2018
I didn't see the SUPER BLUE BLOOD MOON eclipse because it was the wrong time of day and the weather wasn't great either.
BUT, I did see it post-eclipse later that day and then a SUPERMOON the day after!
I also did a quick video to show the cloudy weather we have been having recently.
(31st January / 1st February)
Time 23:30 / 23:45.
Distance 224,555 / 224,553 miles.
Full moon / Waning gibbous phase.
150 degrees SE compass point / 140 degrees SE compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 49.7 / 42.7 degrees.
BUT, I did see it post-eclipse later that day and then a SUPERMOON the day after!
I also did a quick video to show the cloudy weather we have been having recently.
(31st January / 1st February)
Time 23:30 / 23:45.
Distance 224,555 / 224,553 miles.
Full moon / Waning gibbous phase.
150 degrees SE compass point / 140 degrees SE compass point (azimuth).
Altitude 49.7 / 42.7 degrees.
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