26 August 2007

Observing Location	MetOval
Observational Period	2145-2330 EDT
Atmospheric Conditions	Cloud Cover Scattered Clouds becoming Overcast Temperature 75°F Wind Calm to Gentle Breeze Humidity Moderate Feels Like Really nice When I got home from the museum the sky was clear around the Moon so I grabbed SAR and headed up to the Oval to see how much more I saw with the scope than I had yesterday with the hand held binocular. By the time I got set up some of the clouds were encroaching onto the disc. By 2200 EDT I could not find the Moon behind the clouds. The clouds cleared off again but by 2315 EDT it was nearly overcast and didn’t look like there would be a clearing any time soon. It didn’t feel anywhere as moist tonight as it was last nite and the mosquitoes weren’t a problem either. Transparency Nil Seeing II
Instruments	SAR: Coulter CT-100 Newtonian reflector - Charlie ~24mm Kellner w/helical focuser (18x) Celestron Omni 20mm (21x) Celestron Omni 2x Barlow I could see a lot more with SAR than with the binocular but I was having trouble focusing and I don’t know how much of it was poor scope performance and how much was poor seeing.
Observing Party	Charlie Ridgway

Target Moon Constellation Aqr Category Lunar Time yyyymmdd.hhmm 20070826.2145 EDT Comments Lunation 1047 Phase Waxing Gibbous Age 13.11d Distance Light Time (from earth) 377,454 km s Elongation ° % Illuminated 92.9% Morning Terminator Colongitude (λ E) 64.9 Evening Terminator Colongitude (λ W) 244.9 Libration in Latitude 4°49’ Libration in Longitude -5°38’ Magnitude - Angular Size 31.66' Altitude 24° Virtual Moon Atlas graphic I could see Reiner, Seleuces, Krafft and Cardanus well defined off the terminator between Copernicus and Grimaldi. Just north of Montes Riphaeus I see three small white dots in a triangle, Landberg C, Lansberg D and Lansberg A. It looks like they are on the same parallel as the Apollo 12 and Apollo 14 landing sites. Detail from LAC plates 75 & 76 The only real detail tonight is on the SW limb along the terminator between Grimaldi and Schicard or maybe Bailly. The terminator looks very smooth giving the Moon a full appearance. There is the impression of a depression to the SW of Mare Humorum, which is filled with craters. On the S&T Field Map there is a cluster of craters SW of Mersenius that looks like it is at least partially surrounded by a chain of craters or a valley. It runs between Mersenius and Cavendish and between Mersinius D and Leinig on Rulk plates 51 & 61. It looks like there are two craters in a line with Schicard and the limb. One would be Wargentin but I don’t know if the other is Phoctlides, Inhuesim, or a figment of my imagination. Bailly is on the terminator. It looks like there are two rays diverging from Proclus on either side of the top of Pallis Somni. They are faintly shown on Rukl plates 26 & 37 but more clearly appear on the S&T Field Map. Beneath Plato, on the floor of Mare Imbrium, are three distinct white spots, Montes Recti, Montes Teneriffe, and Mons Pico.