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GE 150 Astronomy. Week #4 February 5 ,7 2013. Lunar Phases II. Rising/Setting/Visibility of Lunar Phases. Moonrise and Moonset during Full Moon:. Full Moon rises as the Sun sets. The Full Moon is high in south at Midnight. Full Moon sets as the Sun rises.
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GE 150 Astronomy Week #4 February 5,7 2013
Moonrise and Moonset during Full Moon: • Full Moon rises as the Sun sets. • The Full Moon is high in south at Midnight. • Full Moon sets as the Sun rises. • Full Moon cannot be seen during the day.
Moonrise, Moonset... • Not all Moon phases are visible at all times of the day • Never see a Full Moon during the day • Never see a Crescent Moon at midnight. • Never see the Last Quarter Moon at sunset. • Rising/setting times depend on the details of the Earth-Sun-Moon configuration as viewed from the surface of the rotating Earth.
Phases of the Moon East What time is it when the waxing crescent moon is highest in the sky? When does it first rise? When does it set? West
Phases of the Moon What time is it when the waxing crescent moon is highest in the sky? When does it first rise? When does it set? East West
Phases of the Moon West What time is it when the waxing crescent moon is highest in the sky? When does it first rise? When does it set? East
Phases of the Moon East What moon phase would be rising in the East at 3pm? What Moon phase would be setting in the West at 3pm? West
Phases of the Moon If the Moon is highest in the sky at 9pm today, What phase will the Moon be in three weeks from today?
In each phase of the Moon, how much of the Moon’s total surface is lit by the Sun? Half the Moon is always lit by the Sun Except . . .
Solar Eclipses • Sometimes at New Moon, the alignment is just right, allowing the Moon to block the light from the Sun, creating an eclipse
Annular Eclipse Partial Eclipse Total Eclipse Solar Eclipse
Solar Eclipses • Path of July 1991 eclipse as seen by the GOES weather satellites (time lapse)
Lunar Eclipse – the Shadow of the Earth • The reddish glow is from light refracted through the Earth’s atmosphere and reflected back to Earth (think sunset)
Lunar Eclipses Time
Lunar Eclipses Sunlight refracted and filtered through the Earth’s atmosphere Lunar eclipse viewed from the Moon (artist conception)
Why Doesn’t an Eclipse Happen Every Full/New Moon Ecliptic – name derives from “Eclipse Line” “Line of Nodes” – point where the two orbits cross, has to be pointed toward the Sun Moon’s orbit is tilted 5 degrees with respect to the Earth’s orbit Eclipses occur ONLY when the Moon CROSSES the plane of Earth’s orbit around the Sun AND ONLY during the NEW or FULL phases
Everything Must Align Just Right • Moon must be crossing the Earth’s orbit (ecliptic) at the same time it passes either in front of (New Phase; solar eclipse) or behind (Full Phase; lunar eclipse) the Earth • Nodes aligned: Eclipse at B & D • No alignment therefore no Eclipse at A & C, just normal phases
Which positions cause which eclipses • When the ______ is in the _____ phase and is directly in line with the _____ and the ____, you get a ______ eclipse. • When the ______ is in the _____ phase and is directly in line with the _____ and the ____, you get a ______ eclipse.
Consider the dome of the sky over our heads…. mixing bowl
Consider the dome of the sky over our heads…. inverted mixing bowl ….
The Sky Tonight at 7 PM Generated from Astroviewer.com North Star- “Polaris” Zenith Horizon Partial Meridian
Use the winter triangle to find constellations during winter evenings
Use the Summer Triangle to find constellations during summer evenings
Pleiades Great Orion Nebula Using Orion in to find other objects Betelgeuse Aldebaran Rigel SIRIUS
Pleiades Seven Sisters Subaru
Using the Big Dipper in the northern sky as a way to find other groups of stars
How to find stuff in the sky – Star Charts • http://skymaps.com/ • Free PDF monthly sky maps – with nightly guide • http://www.fourmilab.ch/yoursky/ • Interactive star map with man options/features • http://www.astro.wisc.edu/~dolan/constellations/constellationjavalist.html • Interactive view of individual constellations
Why does the same side always points toward Earth? • Rotation period = orbital period • Tidal locking
Lunar Phases October 2007 • Moon “wobbles” – Libration • 59% of the surface
Precession Cause: Sun’s gravity tugs a little on the Earth’s rotation axis as Earth goes around the Sun Precession takes 26,000 years to complete one cycle