lunar

Lunar Sunrise, Lunar Sunset

August 24, 2018 by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Astronomy Images and Video

The folks at NASA Goddard in Greenbelt, MD, have put together a glorious video of an accelerated sunrise and sunset on the Moon that will reward you with some of the finest images ever taken of our nearest neighbor, and perhaps inspire you to see some of these features with your own telescope. NASA set this visualization of sunrises and sunsets on the Moon to the strains of Claude Debussy’s most famous work, Clair de Lune. Watch the whole thing. It’s a great way to spend a few minutes.

From NASA’s notes [Read more…] about Lunar Sunrise, Lunar Sunset

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Harvest Moon Eclipse

September 24, 2015 by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Solar System

Total lunar eclipse of April 15, 2014 (credit: Alfredo Garcia, Jr.)

On the night and morning of September 27-28, 2015, skywatchers will enjoy a total lunar eclipse at Harvest Moon, the first full Moon of northern autumn. This eclipse will be particularly striking because it peaks just an hour after the Moon makes its closest monthly approach to Earth, so it will appear 13% larger than the last total lunar eclipse on April 4, 2015. This “supermoon” eclipse will be visible for all of North and South America, western Europe, and western Africa. From extreme western North America, the Moon will rise during the eclipse. From South Africa, the Moon will set during the eclipse. For observers in Australia and New Zealand, the eclipse will not be visible [Read more…] about Harvest Moon Eclipse

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Waning Moon Occults the Star Aldebaran

September 2, 2015 by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Celestial Events

The last-quarter Moon will pass through the Hyades star cluster this weekend, on September 4-5, and for observers in eastern North America and western Europe, the Moon will pass in front of the adjacent bright star Aldebaran, the brightest star in the constellation Taurus. During this occultation, the star will disappear behind the lit edge of the Moon, then reappear nearly an hour later, rather dramatically, from behind the dark edge, apparently reemerging out of nowhere. If you’re not in the right place this month, the video above shows Aldebaran as it emerged from behind a waning crescent Moon during an occultation last month [Read more…]

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Once in a Blue Moon

July 28, 2015 by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Solar System

An artificially colored "Blue Moon" of November 2010 imaged from Brooklyn, New York. — An artificially colored “Blue Moon” of November 2010 imaged from Brooklyn, New York.

The second Full Moon of July 2015 arrives on July 31 at 10:43 Universal Time. No doubt the headline writers of the interwebs will be all over this bit of non-news, but as most readers of Cosmic Pursuits understand, a Blue Moon is simply the second Full Moon of a calendar month. Or in another definition, which does not apply here, a Blue Moon is the third full Moon of a season in which there are four Full Moons. In either case, there’s no astronomical significance to the event, and the Moon will not have a blue tinge. Though any Full Moon in summer makes for a pleasant evening walk when you can smell the thick air and scent of summer flowers in this all-too-brief season [Read more…] about Once in a Blue Moon

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