LJWorld.com weblogs Stumbles
Posted
by Sandy Beverly
January 10, 2009 at 3:44 p.m.
Moon Shines Bright Tonight
We’re in for a treat tonight: clear skies and the biggest and brightest full moon of 2009. According to NASA, tonight’s moon will appear 14% bigger and 30% brighter than some other full moons of the year. That’s because the moon’s orbit is elliptical, and one portion of the orbit is about 31,000 miles closer to earth than the farthest part. Tonight, the moon will be at “perigee”, the closest point to us on its orbit. The effect is most noticeable when the moon is near the horizon.http://media.lawrence.com/img/blogs/e... American tribes of the northern and eastern United States called the January moon the “Wolf Moon” because hungry wolves howled outside their villages in mid-winter. In his book Wild Douglas County, Ken Lassman writes that the Osage Indians of this area called the January moon “Frost on the Inside of the Lodge Moon” or the “Moon that Stands Alone.” Because of the perigee and the full moon, very high ocean tides are expected tonight. I guess we Kansans won’t get to witness the tides, but we can enjoy the bright moon, be thankful for our warm homes, and maybe listen for some of our coyote neighbors. P.S. If you missed the moonrise on Saturday, look for it Sunday night, rising a little after sunset. It will still look noticeably big.
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Comments
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liggyon (David Lignell) says…
Hey, Sandy,I'll take a peek at Mr. Cheeseface tonight when I let the dog outside to do his business. Hope you're planning to share pictures with us tomorrow!
tangential_reasoners_anonymous (anonymous) says…
O 8-)
SusieCreamcheeze (anonymous) says…
Wish it was warmer out I would go for a moonlit ride.
justbegintowrite (Ronda Miller) says…
Moon licious! Lovely.....
femail (Linda Hanney) says…
Sandy, I woke up in the middle of the night and it was almost like daylight in the bedroom. I knew why because of your informative post & great pic. Thanks!
liggyon (David Lignell) says…
Sandy, When I went outside last night to walk the dog, I couldn't believe how bright the moon was. I had almost the same sensation of seeing a bright spots when I would look away -- as if looking at a small sun. Thanks for your post, and the picture, too.
autie (anonymous) says…
Yeah, Mike..it was pretty bright last night..ronda, does this mean you will be randomwaitingforthemoontorise? Dang, you know how many times I automatically hit the space bar doing that?
angell (Marlo Angell) says…
Thanks for this, Sandy. Took the kids out last night for a quick peek and it was gorgeous!
WereAllMonkeys (anonymous) says…
After taking our dog for a walk around 11:30pm last night, I commented to my wife that it seemed very bright out almost like daylight, and now I know why.
justbegintowrite (Ronda Miller) says…
monkey, you don't look up when you are walking the dogs? How could you have missed it? Too busy swinging through the trees? :) The dogs should be hoooowllllllinggggggggg
autie (anonymous) says…
check out Venus. look WSW about 15 or 20 degrees up from the horizon...as bright as you will ever see it..
riverdrifter (anonymous) says…
Wolf Moon. Lunars are a funny bunch. Anybody watch it set this morning? Best part of the whole thing. All that you touchAll that you seeAll that you tasteAll you feelAll that you loveAll that you hateAll you distrustAll you saveAll that you giveAll that you dealAll that you buy beg, borrow or stealAll you createAll you destroyAll that you doAll that you sayAll that you eatEveryone you meetAll that you slightEveryone you fightAll that is nowAll that is goneAll that's to comeAnd everything under the sun is in tuneWhen the sun is eclipsed by the moon.
tangential_reasoners_anonymous (anonymous) says…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=flm4xc...
riverdrifter (anonymous) says…
Er, go look right now at 1240 am...Voices of the angels, ring around the moonlightAsking me, said she so freeHow can you catch the sparrow?Lacy, lilting, leery, losing love, lamentingChange my life, make it rightBe my lady.
mike_blur (Mike Blur) says…
Whether the moon is at perigee or not does *not* contribute to the widespread (and mistaken) belief that the moon is "bigger" closer to the horizon. There's a multitude of explanations for the popular "moon illusion," and perigee is not one of them. Even at apogee, a full moon "appears" bigger on the horizon than at the zenith. Cecil Adams has an explanation that may best be understood by the lay person:http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/831/why-does-the-moon-appear-bigger-near-the-horizonIn fact, the moon on the horizon is just a tad smaller in terms of arcseconds compared to when it's high in the sky--a result of the observer being one earth radii farther away when the moon is on the horizon.The last couple days, there was a 16-hour difference between perigee and full moon. Last month, there was a scant 4 hours' difference, and combined with the imminent winter solstice, the moon was closer and higer up in the sky than this month's event! I even noted about it in my own blog (not on this site.)As the year progresses, perigee and full moon will get more and more "out of sync" until apogee and full moon coincide on July 7. On that day, the moon will subtend .4911 degrees of arc. Compare that to last December 12, when the moon subtended .5482 degrees--a difference in size of 12 percent (not sure where NASA got the 14 percent from, but then again, they pitch hyperbole to laypersons.) After July 7, the perigee will "slide" ever closer to the full moon event, until January 30, 2010, when full moon and perigee are a mere two hours apart!
autie (anonymous) says…
oh wow man. that was heavy.