by apodman » Fri Dec 05, 2008 4:15 am
nightowl wrote:... it appears as if the Jupiter moons are visible. Is this ... real?
Refer to ...
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap081204.html
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/0812/Mo ... omp600.jpg
2008 Dec 04 APOD Description wrote:Jupiter, at the upper right about 2 degrees from Venus and Moon, is sporting moons of its own seen as tiny pinpricks of light on either side of the bright planet.
After examining the
large picture at full size, I could see one Jovian moon close in at 10:00 with respect to the planet. After I dusted my screen and scrolled up and down, I could see another moon at 4:00 farther out.
Using that photo as a reference, I came back to the
November 29 APOD and your question. After looking carefully, I can't see any spot that would distinguish itself as a Jovian moon rather than a background star. They are likely to be there, but I just can't tell. I would expect the Jovian moons in the November 29 APOD to be aligned parallel to the ecliptic (lower left to upper right, unless I'm twisted around). Of course, the November 29 APOD is a much deeper exposure than the December 4 APOD (which had Earth's moon to contend with), so it's hard to compare.
[quote="nightowl"]... it appears as if the Jupiter moons are visible. Is this ... real?[/quote]
Refer to ...
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap081204.html
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/0812/Mond_Venus_comp600.jpg
[quote="2008 Dec 04 APOD Description"]Jupiter, at the upper right about 2 degrees from Venus and Moon, is sporting moons of its own seen as tiny pinpricks of light on either side of the bright planet.[/quote]
After examining the [url=http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/0812/Mond_Venus_comp600.jpg]large picture[/url] at full size, I could see one Jovian moon close in at 10:00 with respect to the planet. After I dusted my screen and scrolled up and down, I could see another moon at 4:00 farther out.
Using that photo as a reference, I came back to the [url=http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap081129.html]November 29 APOD[/url] and your question. After looking carefully, I can't see any spot that would distinguish itself as a Jovian moon rather than a background star. They are likely to be there, but I just can't tell. I would expect the Jovian moons in the November 29 APOD to be aligned parallel to the ecliptic (lower left to upper right, unless I'm twisted around). Of course, the November 29 APOD is a much deeper exposure than the December 4 APOD (which had Earth's moon to contend with), so it's hard to compare.