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Hubble will see the Venus Transit
On June 5, 2012, Venus will pass in front of the Sun. This transit will follow numerous amateurs and professionals around the world, but it is interesting that HST will also participate in this! But how will they do it since Hubble cannot see directly the Sun? They will use instead a “mirror” and this mirror will be the Tycho crater in the Moon! Interesting …
(Credit: NASA, ESA, and A. Feild (STScI))
(Illustration Credit: NASA, ESA, and Z. Levay (STScI))
[source]
About full Moon and Moon illusion
The size of a Full Moon depends on the position of the Moon in its orbit (~ 0.5 degrees). Thus the biggest Full Moon is when the Moon is closest to Earth (i.e. at perigee).
from spaceweather.com (28 Jan 2010)
“… a “perigee Moon” some 14% wider and 30% brighter than lesser full Moons of the year.
Johannes Kepler explained the phenomenon 400 years ago. The Moon’s orbit around Earth is not a circle; it is an ellipse, with one side 50,000 km closer to Earth than the other. Astronomers call the point of closest approach “perigee,” and that is where the Moon will be Friday night.
Look around sunset when the Moon is near the eastern horizon. At that time, illusion mixes with reality to produce a truly stunning view. For reasons not fully understood by psychologists, low-hanging Moons look unnaturally large when they beam through foreground objects such as buildings and trees.”
(Check also about Moon illusion on wikipedia.)
from APOD (25 Oct 2007)
“… The difference in apparent size between the largest and smallest Full Moon is quite dramatic and similar to this side by side comparison of the lunar apogee/perigee apparitions from 2006. But seen in the sky many months apart, the change is difficult to notice. “
Moon (Lunar) phases
Just a quick note for moon (or lunar) phases.
From Wikipedia / Lunar Phases (moon phases).
| Phase | Northern Hemisphere | Southern Hemisphere | Visibility |
|---|---|---|---|
| New moon | Not visible, traditionally Moon’s first visible crescent | after sunset | |
| Waxing crescent moon . | Right 1-49% visible | Left 1-49% visible | afternoon and post-dusk |
| First quarter moon | Right 50% visible | Left 50% visible | afternoon and early night |
| Waxing gibbous moon | Right 51-99% visible | Left 51-99% visible | afternoon and most of night |
| Full moon | Fully visible | Fully visible | sunset to sunrise (all night) |
| Waning gibbous moon | Left 51-99% visible | Right 51-99% visible | most of night and morning |
| Last quarter moon | Left 50% visible | Right 50% visible | late night and morning |
| Waning crescent moon | Left 1-49% visible | Right 1-49% visible | pre-dawn and morning |
| Dark moon | Not visible, traditionally Moon’s last visible crescent | before sunrise | |
For the intemediate lunar phases keep in mind that:
crescent : less than half illuminated
gibbous : more than half illuminated
waxing : becoming more luminous
waning : becoming less luminous
So, by combining the terms you can figure out where the moon lies in its orbit and what the phase will be:
> after new moon, the moon becomes more luminous than before, but still less than half in total = waxing crescent
> after first quarter, the moon contimues to raise its luminosity but more than half = waxing gibbous
> after full moon, luminosity drops but still more than half is illuminated = waning gibbous
> after last quarter, luminosity drops even more (towards full moon) but now the total illuminated area is less than half = waning crescent
Moon phase calenders:
1. www.moonconnection.com – current phase moon & calendar
2. U.S. Naval Observatory – moon phase images
3. U.S. Naval Oceanography portal – phases of the moon
