i live in Wodonga Victoria Australia and my mum said on her way home she saw a very weird moon.
did anyone see it there and if so do you know what was up with it
it set very quickly
please help
2007-07-20 02:39:47 · 4 answers · asked by kate 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
she meant wierd as in the moon was like closer than usual.
she also said that she saw black on it i dont know much more as i didnt see it.
and it was a setting moon and she looked at it where there was no light or anything stopping her veiw.
i hope this extra info helps
sorry but she said none of the answers has specified what she saw
thanks anyway
2007-07-20 19:18:23 · update #1
because of you lack of detail the wierd moon she is talking about, i am assuming was orange. this is because it was near the horizon, and the color of the light was affected by the amount of atmospher the light had to pass though, not to mention all the pollutants in the air, on the other hand she might have thought that the moon looked abnormally large that is an optical illusion.to explain this research the moon illusion and it will explain it better than i could
2007-07-20 05:22:41 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I live in Melbourne. Can't say as I recall noting the Moon on Friday night, the weather hasn't been that great for sky viewing of late. I envy your good skies up in Wodonga but I don't think I could take the cold nights.
When you say she saw "black bits" on the Moon, where they on the right side of crescent as she was looking at it? If so I think they could have been the darker parts of the maria, particularly Mare Crisium, Mare Tranquillitatis and the eastern end of Mare Frigoris.
On the other hand, since it seemed larger it appears that it must have been getting close to the horizon. The Moon often seems larger when seen near the horizon. I suppose that in that case "black bits" could have been other obscuring objects near the horizon.
Try to get another look at the Moon in the next few days. It will be in the sky longer into the evening. If the "black bits" are the maria you and she should still be able to see them because they are always visible, though the contrast can change as a function of the Moon phase.
If you are interested in things astronomical perhaps you might like to look up the Astronomical Society of Victoria (yeah OK I'm a member so this is an ad, I'm also fairly sure there's a local Wodonga or Albury-Wodonga society too). ASV is at http://www.asv.org.au
2007-07-21 08:41:33 · answer #2 · answered by Peter T 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's hard to know what she meant by "a very weird Moon". She might be referring to being able to see "the old Moon in the new Moon's arms." With a thin crescent Moon like we have right now, you can often see the part of the Moon which isn't illuminated by the Sun, lit up my sunlight reflected from the Earth, or "Earthshine." The Moon always sets at the same speed because of the Earth's rotation, but it may seem fast if it's observed close to the horizon.
2007-07-20 22:25:04 · answer #3 · answered by GeoffG 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I am in the US and not Australia, but the Moon looked normal to me last night.
2007-07-20 10:26:24 · answer #4 · answered by campbelp2002 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋