Observing the MoonWhy write another guide to observing the Moon? That was the question I was pondering as I began this project, having a fine collection of "classic" lunar guidebooks dating back to 1791 in my own library. As a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS), member of the American Astronomical Society's Division for Planetary Sciences (AAS DPS), and member of the American Geophysical Union (AGU), I am fortunate to know many pro fessionallunar scientists who keep me up to date with developments in lunar scienc- contrary to public perception, lunar science has definitely not stagnated since the last Apollo, No. 17, left the surface of the Moon in December, 1972. I am also lucky to know many amateur lunar observers, who, like me, enjoy actually looking at the Moon with tele scopes and imaging it with a wide variety of devices ranging from regular 35 mm cameras to video recorders and CCD cameras. My friends who study the Moon, whether in their professions or just for fun, gave me several reasons for doing "another" lunar guidebook. First, the last lunar observer's guide of any length was published over ten years ago, and many reviewers noted that it was badly out of date even then. |
Contents
Introduction to the Moon | 1 |
The Moons Motions in Space | 4 |
Lunar Librations and Eclipses | 8 |
The Basic Kinds of Lunar Formations | 13 |
The Lunar Maria and Bays | 19 |
The Lunar Rille | 22 |
The Lunar Mountains | 23 |
A Crash Course in Lunar Geology | 27 |
Questions to Ask | 118 |
Some Important Data | 120 |
What to Do with Your Drawinqs | 123 |
Lunar Topographic Studies | 125 |
Lunar Transient Phenomena LTPs | 133 |
Lunar Eclipses and Occultations | 137 |
Lunar Occultations | 141 |
Imaging the Moon | 145 |
A Lunar Geologists Lexicon | 28 |
Our Changing Views of Lunar Geology | 31 |
How the Moon Came to Be | 32 |
The Lunar Geologic Tim | 33 |
Lunar Geologys Unsolved Mysteries | 36 |
Lunar Features Northeast Quadrant | 39 |
Lunar Features Southeast Quadrant | 55 |
Lunar Features Northwest Quadrant | 71 |
Lunar Features Southwest Quadrant | 87 |
Introduction to Observing the Moon | 105 |
Choosing a Telescope for Lunar Observing | 107 |
Finding Your Way Around the Moon | 110 |
Eyepieces and Filters | 111 |
Drawing Lunar Features | 115 |
Michael Gates | 146 |
An ApogeePerigee Project | 149 |
Vertical Studies | 150 |
Imaging the Moon with an AstroVideo Camera | 152 |
The CDROM Lunar Atlas | 159 |
Lunar CCD Imaging | 160 |
Glossary of Lunar Terminology | 166 |
| 168 | |
Lunar Observing Forms | 170 |
| 177 | |
Files Lunar Atlas on the CDROM | 180 |
Instructions for Using the CDROM | |
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Common terms and phrases
Albedo Alphonsus amateur astronomers amateur lunar observer Apollo appear Aristarchus Atlas atop basalts bowl crater bright camera CCD image central mountain central peak chapter Clavius Copernicus crater chain crater ring craterlets dark detail diameter drawing Earth east wall ejecta eyepiece Figure floor formation full moon geologic highlands hills imaging the Moon impact basin impact event inside large craters lava flows libration limb located look LTPs lunar craters lunar domes lunar eclipse lunar features lunar surface main crater Mare Crisium Mare Fecunditatis Mare Humorum Mare Imbrium Mare Nectaris Mare Nubium Mare Orientale Mare Serenitatis miles Moon's north wall northeast northwest observing the Moon occultation orbit photographs planet planetary ramparts ray system refractor region rille rocks selenographic south wall southeast southern southwest wall Sun angles telescope terracing terrain Tycho valley visible volcanic walled plain west wall wide crater Wilkins and Moore wrinkle ridges