Astronomy Picture of the Day -- Lunation

NASA ^ | February 05, 2012 | (see photo credit)

[SunkenCiv]

Explanation: Our Moon's appearance changes nightly. This time-lapse sequence shows what our Moon looks like during a lunation, a complete lunar cycle. As the Moon orbits the Earth, the half illuminated by the Sun first becomes increasingly visible, then decreasingly visible. The Moon always keeps the same face toward the Earth. The Moon's apparent size changes slightly, though, and a slight wobble called a libration is discernible as it progresses along its elliptical orbit. During the cycle, sunlight reflects from the Moon at different angles, and so illuminates different features differently. A full lunation takes about 29.5 days, just under a month (moon-th).

[SunkenCiv]

[Credit & Copyright: António Cidadão]

[DeoVindiceSicSemperTyrannis]

IBTP?

[DeoVindiceSicSemperTyrannis]

IBTP again?

[DeoVindiceSicSemperTyrannis]

Wonder how many times I can get IBTP?

[DeoVindiceSicSemperTyrannis]

IBTP

IBTP

IBTP

IBTP

IBTP

IBTP

IBTP

IBTP

IBTP

IBTP

[SunkenCiv]

Click the pic to visit an FR post by Lonesome in Massachussets. LiM posted the version seen here (the APoD site uses a different version), mentions the photographer and discusses libations (the lunar kind).

APOD in India: APOD editor to speak in Delhi on Feb. 12 (registration required)

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[Smokin' Joe]

Dagnabbit! Mooned again!

[mikrofon]

Wobbly, unpredictable behavior is what you’d expect from a Loon nation...

[cripplecreek]

Whoa duuuuuude.

[bigheadfred]

Take that Deo...

[left that other site]

Gazing at that for any length of time will drive you Loony!

[bigheadfred]

[SunkenCiv]

I had a short-lived problem finding LiM’s stuff to use. :’) IATP.

[SunkenCiv]

You work fast.

Either one would make an excellent background= image.

[cripplecreek]

I feel like I should be stuffing a dollar into someone’s g string after looking at that.

[bigheadfred]

Either one would make an excellent background= image.

LOL. To all the people who never go outside at night and look--UP!

[SunkenCiv]

Gotta get yer sea-legs if you wanna stare at that one.

[The Cajun]

Gazing at that for any length of time will drive you Loony!

That would make it *ill-lunation* I guess :^)

[SunkenCiv]

I don’t have that far to go.

[left that other site]

You of course KNOW why moon deities were almost always female, don’t you?

28 day cycle,Full Moon Lunacy(PMS),Veiled and Mysterious...

I can posit this loony theory, being female, and having been there, done that! LOL!