A Full Moon rising [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070607.html ] can be a dramatic [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap050623.html ] celestial sight [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap031011.html ], and Full Moons can have many [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070103.html ] names. For example, tonight's Full Moon, the one nearest the autumnal equinox [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070923.html ] in the northern hemisphere, is popularly called the Harvest Moon. According to lore [ http://www.space.com/spacewatch/061229_moonnames2007.html ] the name is a fitting one because farmers could work late into the night at the end of the growing season harvesting crops by moonlight. In the same traditions, the Full Moon following the Harvest Moon [ http://www.earthsky.org/faq/harvest-moon ] is the Hunter's Moon. But, recorded on a trip to the American southwest, this contribution to compelling [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap051215.html ] images of moonrise is appropriately titled Saguaro [ http://www.nps.gov/sagu/photosmultimedia/ photogallery%2Ehtm?eid=170356&root_aId=302#e_170356 ] Moon.
A Skygazer's Full Moon
Title
A Skygazer's Full Moon
Explanation
This dramatically sharp picture [ http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/Hall/6432/ Einstein.html ] of the full moon was recorded on 22 December, 1999 by astroimager Rob Gendler [ http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/Hall/6432/homepage.html ]. Big, beautiful, bright, and evocative [ http://205.121.65.141/Millville/teachers/carles/carles96_97/ writing/moonpoems.htm ], it was the last full moon of the Y1.9Ks, pleasing and inspiring even casual skygazers. December's moon was special [ http://www.magna.com.au/~prfbrown/i_asimov.html ] for another reason, as the full phase [ http://www.ac.wwu.edu/~stephan/phases.html ] occurred on the day of the winter solstice and within hours of lunar perigee [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap991222.html ]. The first full moon of the year 2000 will bring a special treat [ http://www.bibliography.com/moon/ ] as well, presenting denizens of planet Earth with a total lunar eclipse [ http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/SEextra/TLE2000Jan20.html ]. On Thursday evening, January 20, the moon will encounter the dark edge of Earth's shadow at 10:01 PM Eastern Time [ http://tycho.usno.navy.mil/zones.html ] with the total eclipse phase beginning at 11:05 PM and lasting for 77 minutes. This lunar eclipse will be visible from North and South America and Western Europe (total phase begins at 4:05 AM GMT January 21).
General Description
International Space Station Imagery
Eclipse with Lighthouse
Title
Eclipse with Lighthouse
Explanation
A red Moon rose [ http://www.abmedia.com/astro/current/ lunareclipse-030307.html ] over Cape Cod, Massachusetts, USA on March 3rd, immersed in Earth's shadow near the total phase [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070308.html ] of a lunar eclipse. This serene portrait [ http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/nof/portraits/ ] of the eclipsed Moon in a dark blue twilight sky also features the Highland Lighthouse [ http://www.nps.gov/archive/caco/places/ thehighlands.html ] (aka Cape Cod lighthouse), another more locally familiar beacon in the night. Now automated, the 66 foot tall structure in use today was built in 1857. How often has there been an eclipse within view of the Highland light? For locations on planet Earth there are about two eclipse seasons [ http://www.earthview.com/tutorial/patterns.htm ] each year. So, eclipses have actually had many chances [ http://www.eclipse.org.uk/eclbin/query_usno.cgi ] to be part of the pictorial history [ http://lighthouse.cc/highland/history.html ] of the Highland Lighthouse, including a total solar eclipse in 1932 [ http://www.eclipse.org.uk/eclipse/0311932/ ].
The Moon In January
Title
The Moon In January
Explanation
Reckoning [ http://tycho.usno.navy.mil/ ] dates by Universal Time, the next full moon [ http://aa.usno.navy.mil/AA/data/docs/ MoonPhase.html#ninetynine ] will be on Sunday, January 31. Since the last was on January 2nd, Sunday's full moon will be the second this month. Perhaps only in recent times, the term "Blue Moon" has come [ http://www.skypub.com/sights/moonplanets/mar99bluemoon.html ] to mean the second full moon in a month, joining a list of folklore names [ http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/ask_astro/ answers/970314a.html ] for the brightest lunar phase. Aren't Blue Moons extremely rare? [ http://www.skypub.com/news/pr_bluemoon.html ] Well, the moon's phases repeat every 29.5 days and most months have 30 or 31 days, so a Blue Moon is certainly possible if not a common event. In fact, the next (and last) Blue Moon in 1999 will occur in March, leaving February without a full moon at all. This sharp telescopic view [ http://www.eso.org/outreach/press-rel/pr-1999/pr-02-99.html ] of a waning crescent moon was recorded on January 12th by the European Southern Observatory's new WFI camera [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990121.html ].
The Full Moon
Title
The Full Moon
Explanation
Earth has one moon. A symbol in famous love songs [ http://www.primenet.com/~tansy/audrey/moon.html ], movies [ http://www.rscreations.com/werewolf/movies/index.html ], poems [ http://205.121.65.141/Millville/teachers/carles/carles96_97/writing/moonpoems.htm ], and folklore [ http://peacock.tnjc.edu.tw/MOON/moon.html ], many myths [ http://www.pantheon.org/mythica/articles/m/man_in_moon.html ] about the Moon [ http://www.seds.org/nineplanets/nineplanets/luna.html ] date back to ancient history. In fact, the name Monday originates from Moon-day [ http://www.greenheart.com/billh/origin.html ]. The Moon glows by light it reflects from the Sun [ http://www.seds.org/nineplanets/nineplanets/sol.html ] and is frequently the brightest object in the night sky. The Moon [ http://www.badastronomy.com/bitesize/solar_system/moon.html ] orbits the Earth about once a month (moon-th) from about 1 light second away. The above-pictured Full Moon [ http://oposite.stsci.edu/pubinfo/pr/1999/14/extra-photos.html ] occurs when the Moon is nearly opposite to the Sun in its orbit. The Moon's diameter is about 1/4 that of the Earth [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990131.html ], and from the Earth's surface appears to have almost exactly the same angular size as the Sun. Recent evidence indicates [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990326.html ] that the Moon [ http://stardate.utexas.edu/resources/ssguide/moon.html ] formed from a colossal impact on the Earth [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990131.html ] about 4.5 billions of years ago, and therefore has a similar composition to the Earth. Humans walked on the Moon [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap981004.html ] for the first time in 1969.
Hubble Resolves Expiration D
…
Title
Hubble Resolves Expiration Date For Green Cheese Moon
Explanation
Using the new camera [ http://www.stsci.edu/hst/localNews?display_type=all#HeadlineNews ] on the recently refitted [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap020314.html ] Hubble Space Telescope [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010806.html ], astronomers have been able to confirm that the Moon is made of green cheese [ http://www.cheese.com/facts1.asp ]. The telling clue was the resolution of a numeric date after which the Moon [ http://www.nineplanets.org/luna.html ] may go bad. Controversy [ http://peace.saumag.edu/faculty/Kardas/Courses/GPWeiten/C1Intro/GreenCheese.html ] still exists, however, over whether the date resolved is truly an expiration date [ http://www.consumeraffairs.com/nutrition/expiration_dates.htm ] or just a "sell by" date. "To be cautious, we should completely devour the Moon by tomorrow," a spokesperson advised. Happy April Fool's Day [ http://www.usis.usemb.se/Holidays/celebrate/april.html ] from the folks at APOD [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html ]. The above image [ http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/imgcat/html/object_page/ra9_b001.html ] (slightly altered) was actually taken in 1965 by the Ranger 9 [ http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/tmp/1965-023A.html ] probe minutes before impact. The popular "Moon is made of Green Cheese" myth [ http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a990723a.html ] can be traced back almost 500 years. It [ http://www.people.cornell.edu/pages/wcc3/humor/green_cheese.html ] has been used historically in context to indicate a claim so clearly false that no one -- not even April Fools [ http://wilstar.com/holidays/aprilfool.htm ] -- will believe it.
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