This afternoon my mom told me that Mars will be super close to the Earth giving the appearance of "two moons". I thought this sounded pretty neat at first, but then I thought if Mars is going to be close enough to appear as our moon won't that mess up the Earth's tides and cause some damage. Not to mention the idea sounded a bit far fetch even though it did sound cool at the same time.
So I did my research and...
unfortunately and luckily (for the Earth's tides and such) there is going to be an lunar eclipse tomorrow night, and nothing with Mars being super close.
This, of course, still makes me giddy cause I love eclipses of all sorts.
I was wondering did anyone else hear anything about them being "two moons" due to Mars on the 27th?
Lunar Eclipse
I haven't heard anything about Mars being too close coming up, but it actually happens fairly often. It only appears to be two moons when this occurs because of the size difference. A big object far away is like a little object up close, same as what the sun and moon do, and even still Mars won't appear that large to us. It only looks like an obviously reddish star. Anyway, it won't affect our tides; it just looks pretty.
As to the moon, it's coming into harvest season for the northern hemisphere. I believe it's because of that and the pollution in the atmosphere that cause the eclipse to look 'bloody'. I remember some pictures from the last eclipse over Europe that were quite red as well, this one should be more so. It'll occur at 1:53am MT tonight? I'll be watching
As to the moon, it's coming into harvest season for the northern hemisphere. I believe it's because of that and the pollution in the atmosphere that cause the eclipse to look 'bloody'. I remember some pictures from the last eclipse over Europe that were quite red as well, this one should be more so. It'll occur at 1:53am MT tonight? I'll be watching
Right. I've seen when Mars is close and looks like a pretty little red star. However, the way my mom and brother were going on about it they made it seem like it would be exactly the same size as the moon. That's why I was questioning it affecting our tides at first.Sercee wrote:I haven't heard anything about Mars being too close coming up, but it actually happens fairly often. It only appears to be two moons when this occurs because of the size difference. A big object far away is like a little object up close, same as what the sun and moon do, and even still Mars won't appear that large to us. It only looks like an obviously reddish star. Anyway, it won't affect our tides; it just looks pretty.
As to the moon, it's coming into harvest season for the northern hemisphere. I believe it's because of that and the pollution in the atmosphere that cause the eclipse to look 'bloody'. I remember some pictures from the last eclipse over Europe that were quite red as well, this one should be more so. It'll occur at 1:53am MT tonight? I'll be watching
I can't wait either. I'm going to have my digital camera read
Sobek, do you not have any lunar eclipses around you?
Well, you'll upload my pictures of it on here then to show you.
Second Lunar Eclipse this Year
AFP - Sunday, August 26 04:46 amPARIS (AFP) -
The Moon will fall into the Earth's deep shadow on Tuesday, taking on a lustrous red or orange hue during the second total eclipse of 2007.
Star gazers in east Asia and across the Americas will be able to watch as our planet's natural satellite is consumed by celestial dragons, as the Chinese once thought.
And night owls in the Pacific basin, from eastern Australia to the west coast of the north America, will be treated to the full eclipse at 10:37 GMT, corresponding to early evening in Sydney and a couple hours before sunrise in Los Angeles and Vancouver.
The perfect spot for spectators will be French Polynesia, according to NASA, but the eclipse will not be visible at all in Europe or Africa.
The Moon does not disappear from view during a full eclipse, but is shielded by Earth for about 90 minutes from the Sun's direct light.
The longest possible duration for the total phase is 107 minutes, and last occurred in July 2000.
A total eclipse can only take place at full Moon, and only if the Moon passes through the zone, called the umbra, in which the Earth blocks all of the Sun's rays.
The color cast by refracted light -- which can range from bright orange to blood red to copper to dark gray -- depends on the amount of volcanic gas and dust in the atmosphere blocking the Sun's light.
In the absence of recent eruptions, the Moon should be a vivid red or orange, according to NASA.
Total lunar eclipses normally occur roughly every couple of years, but this year there will have been two, the other having taken place on March 3.
The next chance to see the Moon slip entirely into terrestrial shadows will be on February 21, 2008, but after that the wait is longer: December 2010.
Further details on these eclipses and information on eclipses in general can be found on http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/lunar.html
Details on Aug 28 Moon eclipse, from NASA
See, it's only fair that this time you guys get to see it,we got it last time.The fundies are shit scared by this,but hey- we are talking about people who think the fossil record is a test of faith from God!
AFP - Sunday, August 26 04:46 amPARIS (AFP) -
The Moon will fall into the Earth's deep shadow on Tuesday, taking on a lustrous red or orange hue during the second total eclipse of 2007.
Star gazers in east Asia and across the Americas will be able to watch as our planet's natural satellite is consumed by celestial dragons, as the Chinese once thought.
And night owls in the Pacific basin, from eastern Australia to the west coast of the north America, will be treated to the full eclipse at 10:37 GMT, corresponding to early evening in Sydney and a couple hours before sunrise in Los Angeles and Vancouver.
The perfect spot for spectators will be French Polynesia, according to NASA, but the eclipse will not be visible at all in Europe or Africa.
The Moon does not disappear from view during a full eclipse, but is shielded by Earth for about 90 minutes from the Sun's direct light.
The longest possible duration for the total phase is 107 minutes, and last occurred in July 2000.
A total eclipse can only take place at full Moon, and only if the Moon passes through the zone, called the umbra, in which the Earth blocks all of the Sun's rays.
The color cast by refracted light -- which can range from bright orange to blood red to copper to dark gray -- depends on the amount of volcanic gas and dust in the atmosphere blocking the Sun's light.
In the absence of recent eruptions, the Moon should be a vivid red or orange, according to NASA.
Total lunar eclipses normally occur roughly every couple of years, but this year there will have been two, the other having taken place on March 3.
The next chance to see the Moon slip entirely into terrestrial shadows will be on February 21, 2008, but after that the wait is longer: December 2010.
Further details on these eclipses and information on eclipses in general can be found on http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/lunar.html
Details on Aug 28 Moon eclipse, from NASA
See, it's only fair that this time you guys get to see it,we got it last time.The fundies are shit scared by this,but hey- we are talking about people who think the fossil record is a test of faith from God!
The link in my post above is interesting. According to the Saros no. [very complicated.lol] the March eclipse was at descending node and this one is at ascending node. Endings and beginnings. In that order.Science backs up magick for once.lol again.The site has loads of eclipse info. and tables of dates etc. Handy for working out when they occur and what to 'do' with them.Yippee.
I saw the eclipse too. It was gorgeous. I especially liked how the moon looked like the light WAS shadow. That was awesome. I bet my neighbors thought I was nuts, standing in the middle of the street gaping at the sky at 4:30-5:00 in the morning, pointing a stick at the moon.
What did I do for the eclipse? I made a juniper wand last night. I was just walking in the neighborhood, and I saw shrub clippings and I grabbed the only one I could carry and took it home figuring, "hey, smudge!" Then I trimmed off all the green stuff and saw that the branch it came from was PERFECT for a wand. So I trimmed it all off, and it's a wand with three prongs at the end that twine around each other. It fits perfectly in my hand, as if made for it. Wand hand comfort has always been a big issue with me in the past. I got into this trance while smoothing the wood. It has lots of knots from all the branches I had to saw off, and lots of surface area. I finished it just as the eclipse started. So I meditated for a while, then, after it got going for a bit, I went out and charged my wand by the retreating light of the eclipse. (since the eclipse starts undoing itself right around dawn hereabouts) Really really awesome. Once I find my camera, I'll post a picture of my very cool and funky wand.
It was gorgeous. I especially liked how the moon looked like the light WAS shadow. That was awesome. I bet my neighbors thought I was nuts, standing in the middle of the street gaping at the sky at 4:30-5:00 in the morning, pointing a stick at the moon. What did I do for the eclipse? I made a juniper wand last night. I was just walking in the neighborhood, and I saw shrub clippings and I grabbed the only one I could carry and took it home figuring, "hey, smudge!" Then I trimmed off all the green stuff and saw that the branch it came from was PERFECT for a wand. So I trimmed it all off, and it's a wand with three prongs at the end that twine around each other. It fits perfectly in my hand, as if made for it. Wand hand comfort has always been a big issue with me in the past. I got into this trance while smoothing the wood. It has lots of knots from all the branches I had to saw off, and lots of surface area. I finished it just as the eclipse started. So I meditated for a while, then, after it got going for a bit, I went out and charged my wand by the retreating light of the eclipse. (since the eclipse starts undoing itself right around dawn hereabouts) Really really awesome. Once I find my camera, I'll post a picture of my very cool and funky wand.
That was a stunning eclipse. A few of use drove out to the country to watch it (where the moon was so bright it was almost painful!) but realized we went out an hour too early. So we went back in, realized that it was just as bright from the back porch and enjoyed it with blankets and hot chocolate. So beautiful! And the weather cooperated perfectly; it rained most of the day and was forcasted to rain all the next day, but the clouds disappeared COMPLETELY at about 10:00 at night, so we had perfectly clear skies to view!
Also, I don't know if any of you noticed, but there were a few meteors shooting across the sky while the shadow was going across! Did you see them? I couldn't believe I was treated to both the eclipse and the meteors!
Also, I don't know if any of you noticed, but there were a few meteors shooting across the sky while the shadow was going across! Did you see them? I couldn't believe I was treated to both the eclipse and the meteors!
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The Dragon