Post by Centaur on Sept 2, 2005 11:45:58 GMT -6
Who will be first to spot the New Moon by naked-eye after its conjunction with the Sun on 2005 SEP 03 at 18:45 UT (13:45 CDT)?
The slender crescent Moon, a day or two old, was traditionally referred to as the New Moon. On the day of conjunction our ancestors called it the Dark Moon. However, most modern calendar makers insist on labeling the conjunction day as that of the New Moon.
September is the month during which the ecliptic makes its sharpest angle with the horizon after sunset for observers in mid-northern latitudes. That makes the spotting of a one-day-old Moon virtually impossible, especially when it is near apogee. However, most North Americans should be able to sight it when it is 2-days-old on the 5th. Then on the 6th Diana's Bow (3-day-old Moon) will form a beautiful grouping with Venus, Jupiter and Spica.
Since I began this series in 2004 March within several astronomical message boards, the overall champion is Navneeth (SN1987A) in Madras, India with a 2005 January sighting 24:51 hours after conjunction.
Please report your September observation within this thread, including location and time with zone. Even negative results would be interesting. Photos would be especially nice. No prizes, just bragging rights.
I've created graphics previewing the western sky 30 minutes after sunset on both the 5th and 6th as seen from Chicago's Adler Planetarium. Nevertheless, the diagrams should be useful for most North American observers. To see them, click:
www.curtrenz.com/astronomical.html
The graphics may be removed soon after the events occur.
The slender crescent Moon, a day or two old, was traditionally referred to as the New Moon. On the day of conjunction our ancestors called it the Dark Moon. However, most modern calendar makers insist on labeling the conjunction day as that of the New Moon.
September is the month during which the ecliptic makes its sharpest angle with the horizon after sunset for observers in mid-northern latitudes. That makes the spotting of a one-day-old Moon virtually impossible, especially when it is near apogee. However, most North Americans should be able to sight it when it is 2-days-old on the 5th. Then on the 6th Diana's Bow (3-day-old Moon) will form a beautiful grouping with Venus, Jupiter and Spica.
Since I began this series in 2004 March within several astronomical message boards, the overall champion is Navneeth (SN1987A) in Madras, India with a 2005 January sighting 24:51 hours after conjunction.
Please report your September observation within this thread, including location and time with zone. Even negative results would be interesting. Photos would be especially nice. No prizes, just bragging rights.
I've created graphics previewing the western sky 30 minutes after sunset on both the 5th and 6th as seen from Chicago's Adler Planetarium. Nevertheless, the diagrams should be useful for most North American observers. To see them, click:
www.curtrenz.com/astronomical.html
The graphics may be removed soon after the events occur.
