New Mars Forums

Palomar

Member

From: USA

Registered: 2002-05-30

Posts: 9,734

Re: Summer Moon Illusion

http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2005 … on.htm]Not since June 1987

Step outside any evening at sunset and look around. You'll see a giant moon rising in the east. It looks like Earth's moon, round and cratered; the Man in the Moon is in his usual place. But something's wrong. This full moon is strangely inflated. It's huge!

*We're surrounded by mountains, but there's a lower-lying chain of them in the SE.  Likely I'll be able to get a good view.

This week's full moon hangs lower in the sky than any full moon since June 1987, so the Moon Illusion is going to be extra strong.

Yeah. 

Interesting that cameras can't pick up on this optical illusion.  Makes me wonder what cameras on our probes and robots "out there" can't see which our eyes could.

--Cindy

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We all know [i]those[/i] Venusians: Doing their hair in shock waves, smoking electrical coronas, wearing Van Allen belts and resting their tiny elbows on a Geiger counter...

--John Sladek (The New Apocrypha)

Josh Cryer

Moderator

Registered: 2001-09-29

Posts: 3,830

Re: Summer Moon Illusion

I've seen many many moons the last few months, practically every night that it was out. I noticed it getting bigger, and I just thought it was my imagination.

Well, I suppose it is our imagination, since it's an optical illusion, but it's still. I went swimming the other night as the sun set, and the near-full moon was out. Was quite picturesque. Beautiful blood red sunset (which, with dark swimming goggles on, wasn't too bad to look at directly), with a redish brown moon in the opposite direction. Too bad I have a cold now, though.

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Some useful links while MER are active. [url=http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/home/index.html]Offical site[/url] [url=http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/MM_NTV_Web.html]NASA TV[/url] [url=http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/mer2004/]JPL MER2004[/url] [url=http://www.spaceflightnow.com/mars/mera/statustextonly.html]Text feed[/url]
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The amount of solar radiation reaching the surface of the earth totals some 3.9 million exajoules a year.

Palomar

Member

From: USA

Registered: 2002-05-30

Posts: 9,734

Re: Summer Moon Illusion

*My husband and I saw the Moon last evening.  It arose just above the lowest point in the SE mountain range.  Huge, orange -- like a harvest moon.  :up: 

Our monsoon season is beginning to brew, and the night before we had scattered thundershowers.  We were supposed to have more t-showers last evening and throughout the week, but the weather was perfect and the sky clear as a bell last evening.

Should put on another fine show this evening.

--Cindy

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We all know [i]those[/i] Venusians: Doing their hair in shock waves, smoking electrical coronas, wearing Van Allen belts and resting their tiny elbows on a Geiger counter...

--John Sladek (The New Apocrypha)