Supermoon
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Kodiak Qc
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As written on an other thread this morning…
The difference between the furthest and the closest elliptic
orbital distances of the Moon around the Earth — perigee vs
apogee — may appear (roughly 12~15% larger in diameter)
greater but is in fact insignificant. The term supermoon is as-
trological in origin, and has no precise astronomical definition.
The optical effect comes from the low position of the Moon on
the horizon and the "loupe" effect of Earth's atmosphere. The
same effect it has on the setting / rising Sun.
but that comes to the cost of finer details. These are better
captured when the Moon is high — where the atmosphere is
thinnest.
As written on an other thread this morning…
The difference between the furthest and the closest elliptic
orbital distances of the Moon around the Earth — perigee vs
apogee — may appear (roughly 12~15% larger in diameter)
greater but is in fact insignificant. The term supermoon is as-
trological in origin, and has no precise astronomical definition.
The optical effect comes from the low position of the Moon on
the horizon and the "loupe" effect of Earth's atmosphere. The
same effect it has on the setting / rising Sun.
Of course, the size of the Moon will be greater the lower it is
but that comes to the cost of finer details. These are better
captured when the Moon is high — where the atmosphere is
thinnest.
Last edited:
To add to Daniel (? @Kodiak Qc ) above ... a "blue moon" has even less meaning ... its just the second new moon in a calendar month.
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Lensflare
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Well, the asronomers can spout all their scientific claptrap, but the 'moon website' that gave the 'best viewing time as 12.40 1st Feb and 'moon rise' for my location as 19.27 - total b*****ks. I shall believe my own calculations next time. I had made plans to go and get some pictures, had it all in my head where to go and thought about 17.30 ish would be when the moon popped into view (moon rise) - driving home, having gone by the time given by those in the know....to see the moon come up over the horizon the size of a football and glowing orange, 17.24 by the clock in the car. Of course, my gear was all at home ready for making the trip out.
Astronomers hey, what the hell do they know? The best viewing time was 17.24, not 12.40.....at least I got the last one.
Astronomers hey, what the hell do they know? The best viewing time was 17.24, not 12.40.....at least I got the last one.
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The 12.40 am time for the 1st of Feb is given because that is the transit time for the moon ie when it is at its highest hence giving a view through the least amount of atmosphere (the best astronomical “seeing”). The orange colour you saw was nothing to do with the eclipse (which wasn’t visible from the uk) and was purely a result of the reflected light from the moon “scattering” due to its low angle (more atmosphere) in the sky in the same way as a red morning or evening sun. The 19.27 time for the moon rising I can only assume is a result of “user error” when it came to entering in your home location, using you profile location of uttoxeter I came up with a moon rise time of 16.57 which seems to marry up with your observations
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Hmmmm. I don't think astonomers have much idea about photographic composition then, if they believe the moon at it's zenith is the 'best view'.
Moonrise time - it could well be user error then. I was away and phoned home to get Anna to look it up.....but I did believe her. I should have checked for myself. Never mind.
Moonrise time - it could well be user error then. I was away and phoned home to get Anna to look it up.....but I did believe her. I should have checked for myself. Never mind.
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The zenith does give the clearest view, if not the best compositions. All depends on what's meant by "best"!
For sun and moon rises and sets, I use the Photographers' Ephemeris, available free for web use or as a reasonably cheap app for Android and fruity phones/tablets.
For sun and moon rises and sets, I use the Photographers' Ephemeris, available free for web use or as a reasonably cheap app for Android and fruity phones/tablets.
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That'll be because pure astronomers are only interested in the object itself, whereas pure photographers are only interested in fitting that object into a landscape. Science vs aesthetics. There is crossover between the two, of course, but essentially it is looking at the same thing from two different viewpoints.
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So most people think, and therefore Google thinks, in such a strongly reinforcing loop that it is now extremely difficult to find out what a blue moon really is, or was, before this fake fact corrupted it. I quote from https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/moon/blue-moon.html
"
- Seasonal Blue Moon = The third Full Moon in an astronomical season with four Full Moons (versus the usual three).
- Monthly Blue Moon = The second Full Moon in a month with two Full Moons."
"Why Are There Different Definitions?
The reason the second definition of Blue Moon exists is down to an error originally made by amateur astronomer James Hugh Pruett (1886–1955). He misunderstood the basis for calculating the seasonal Blue Moon and wrote that a Blue Moon was the second Full Moon in a month in an article published in Sky & Telescope magazine in 1946. This erroneous definition since spread, particularly after it was quoted in a popular radio program called StarDate in 1980 and then appeared as an answer in a 1986 version of the board game Trivial Pursuit. Today, it is considered a second definition rather than a mistake."
[...]
"The Rarest Blue Moon
A Moon that actually looks blue, however, is a very rare sight. The Moon, full or any other phase, can appear blue when the atmosphere is filled with dust or smoke particles of a certain size; slightly wider than 0.7 micron. The particles scatter the red light, making the Moon appear blue. This is known as Mie scattering, and can happen for instance after a dust storm, a forest fire, or a volcanic eruption.
Eruptions like the ones on Mt. Krakatoa, in Indonesia (1883), El Chichon, Mexico (1983), on Mt. St. Helens (1980) and Mount Pinatubo (1991) are all known to have made the moon look blue. Some people even suggest that the term once in a Blue Moon is based on these rare occasions, rather than the Full Moon definitions."
Among the "some people" who thought that the "blue moon" was a very rare visible phenomenon due to atmospheric conditions was my father. We were walking home through a park in the cold dark one early winter's evening, I think around 1949. A really blue moon was visible high in the sky. There was a very faint orange halo closely surrounding it. My father told me to be sure to remember it, because it was an extremely rare phenomenon, due to ice crystals or dust high in the atmosphere, as rare as once in a lifetime. He said it was the first one he'd seen, and might quite probably be the last one I'd ever see. I was very impressed. It's beginning to look as thought he was right.
I used to be able to google up the date and reasons for this blue moon, but the "second full moon in a month" nonsense has now completely drowned it out.
StewartR
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Well said!
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Might be "nonsense" but since it's now a second definition, it's correct usage. Compare the original meaning of "nice"...
StewartR
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Define "best". When the moon is high in the sky, you're looking at it through 5 miles of atmosphere. When it's just rising, you're looking at it through 200 miles of atmosphere. If all you want is a featureless yellow/white blob to put in the frame near something else, the rising moon is fine. But if you want to see details such as craters, it's definitely better when the moon is high. Then again, if you want to see details, the full moon isn't the best time of month to do it in the first place because the lighting is so flat.
This won't be very helpful today, but hopefully it might be helpful in future. If you want to photograph the full moon, you don't need to consult a website to find out when it rises or sets. By definition it is 100% illuminates, so it's opposite the sun in the sky. Therefore it rises when the sun sets and it sets when the sun rises, to within +/- a few minutes.
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Last time I had a stereo film developed, the High Street chain who did the D&P cut the prints wrong so I had to get them reprinted. Should have specified exactly what they needed to do. At least they did them at the right size for the viewer I have!