APOD: Eclipse at Moonset (2010 Dec 29)

[APOD Robot]

Eclipse at Moonset

Explanation: Hugging the horizon, a dark red Moon greeted early morning skygazers in eastern Atlantic regions on December 21, as the total phase of 2010's Solstice Lunar Eclipse began near moonset. This well composed image of the geocentric celestial event is a composite of multiple exposures following the progression of the eclipse from Tenerife, Canary Islands. Initially reflecting brightly on a sea of clouds and the ocean's surface itself, the Moon sinks deeper into eclipse as it moves from left to right across the sky. Opposite the Sun, the Moon was immersed in the darkest part of Earth's shadow as it approached the western horizon, just before sunrise came to Tenerife.

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[NoelC]

Lovely shot!

It's interesting that the moon can be perceived as bigger near the horizon even in a picture. Our brains are strange things indeed.

-Noel

[Chris Peterson]

It's interesting that the moon can be perceived as bigger near the horizon even in a picture. Our brains are strange things indeed.

I'd say there has been a compositing error in making this image. All the eclipse stages show the same size Moon except the one right at the horizon, which is actually 14% larger than all the others. This is not physically reasonable.

[alter-ego]

It's interesting that the moon can be perceived as bigger near the horizon even in a picture. Our brains are strange things indeed.

I'd say there has been a compositing error in making this image. All the eclipse stages show the same size Moon except the one right at the horizon, which is actually 14% larger than all the others. This is not physically reasonable.

As much as I'm a proponent for technical detail and accuracy, I would likewise think that this image has a composition error, but I'm willing to bet this composition is one of choice. Having missed most of this eclipse, only catching fleeting glimpses of any color during totality due to cloud cover, I found the image very satisfying - likely, and subtley, do to the larger moon. Certainly the image has been artistically retouched and, personally, I'm glad it was accepted as an APOD. I know many readers clamor to identify falsified APODs, questioning image value or details that don't add up. I too am a stickler for correctness, but I hope this image is left alone and simply accepted for it's beauty. Looking at this image I was left with the wish that I was there, and that's what I really value.

[orin stepanek]

I too; liked this APOD. It's a great picture. I would also like to see the picture with only one moon. It would make a great scenic view.

[neufer]

I would likewise think that this image has a composition error, but I'm willing to bet this composition is one of choice.

<<An ‘error' is a deviation from accuracy or correctness.
A ‘mistake' is an error caused by a fault: the fault being misjudgment, carelessness, or forgetfulness.

Now, say that I run a stop sign because I was in a hurry, and wasn't concentrating, and the police stop me, that is a mistake. If, however, I try to park in an area with conflicting signs, and I get a ticket because I was incorrect on my interpretation of what the signs meant, that would be an error. The first time it would be an error. The second time it would be a mistake since I should have known better.>>

<<The word error entails different meanings and usages relative to how it is conceptually applied. The concrete meaning of the Latin word error is "wandering" or "straying". To the contrary of an illusion, an error or a mistake can sometimes be dispelled through knowledge (knowing that one is looking at a mirage and not at real water doesn't make the mirage disappear). However, some errors can occur even when individuals have the required knowledge to perform a task correctly.>>

<<A gaffe [or giraffe] is a verbal mistake, usually made in a social environment. The mistake may come from saying something that is true, but inappropriate. It may also be an erroneous attempt to REVEal a TRUTH. Finally, gaffes can be malapropisms, grammatical errors or other verbal and gestural weaknesses or REVElations through body language. Actually REVEaling factual or social TRUTH through words or body language, howEVER, can commonly result in embarrassment or, when the gaffe has negative connotations, friction between people involVED.>>

£500 Canary Islander

---

An [sic] pessimist is nothing more than an experienced optimist.

[c]"A pessimist sees only the dark side of the clouds, and mopes;
a philosopher sees both sides, and shrugs;
an optimist doesn't see the clouds at all - he's walking on them."
- Leonard Louis Levinson

"The optimist proclaims that we live in the best of all possible worlds,
and the pessimist fears this is true."
- James Branch Cabell[/c]

AnNoyangaffer

[biddie67]

What a beautiful picture - it almost triggers a mild sense of vertigo.

Also, it shows how the moon is actually traveling against the background of the sky - when I saw the eclipse from my backyard, I had no sense that it was moving even though I watched it for almost 2 hours.


P.S. With all the open space that the Sun, Earth and Moon move through, it seems nothing short of a miracle that they actually line up such that an eclipse can really occur ....

[NoelC]

I'd say there has been a compositing error in making this image.

Wow, I never thought to actually measure it.

-Noel

[alter-ego]

<<An ‘error' is a deviation from accuracy or correctness.
A ‘mistake' is an error caused by a fault: the fault being misjudgment, carelessness, or forgetfulness...

...However, some errors can occur even when individuals have the required knowledge to perform a task correctly.>>

An [sic] pessimist is nothing more than an experienced optimist.

Thanks for the insights, Art. That's a good catch and even though I think there could be deeper discussion on this, I'm not going to pursue it - so I stand corrected. My focus was not whether Chris erred in his statement, but rather an error in the composition accuracy might be viewed as a purposeful positive addition to the image. Maybe that's a better way of saying it, but that's the point I wanted to get across.

Hey, a serious thanks for pointing out my outright misteak in the signiture. It fits with the whole discussion, no ambiguity there! It's hard to believe I never caught it

BTW, nice picture and quotes. They have the Artistic touch.
Happy Holidays

[billyg]

Absolutely the most fantastic photo yet.I mean it.I wept.Billy Gilbert...

[hjones]

I am confused about the eclipse geometry depicted in this APOD. The moon is moving from the left side to the right side of this composite photo, but the earth's shadow also appears to be moving towards the right and overtaking the moon? Shouldn't we expect the moon to be exiting the shadow based on the orientation of the shadow curvature?

[neufer]

I am confused about the eclipse geometry depicted in this APOD. The moon is moving from the left side to the right side of this composite photo, but the earth's shadow also appears to be moving towards the right and overtaking the moon? Shouldn't we expect the moon to be exiting the shadow based on the orientation of the shadow curvature?

The moon is entering the shadow.
It is night-time and a waning moon is setting in the west about ten hours after the sun itself set.
Only hours later will the sun rise in the east from the longest night of the year.

[lenka]

Woooooooow! More pics like this please.