Quote:
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Originally Posted by swdw
Quote:
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Originally Posted by Nuc
I was cruising on the surface and saw the scene below. I check the Almanac from this download and sure enough on this date (Dec 18, 1941) moonset was to be 26 minutes after sunset. My question is; Is this an observable situation in the real world or would the sun's glare prevent seeing the moon?
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You mean like this?
http://www.igougo.com/travelcontent/...PhotoID=328270 |
I would say that both views are physically
impossible for the moon. Simply because the moon cannot reflect sunlight from it's shadowside. As the moon is way much closer than the sun, and when both are together in the sky, the light of the sun only strikes the far side of the moon (for us behind it). And thus cannot reflect off of the side of the moon that is pointing to the earth. Nuc's screenshot must be a bug or graphic-file anomoly.
While SWDW's image looks more like a split-path refraction of the sun's rays through parts of the earths atmosphere (bending due to temperature variations), creating a double picture of the sun. Aka an optical illusion or 'fata morgana', just like the watery surface appearing on highways/roads in the distance on a hot day. As the lower 'orb' is straight below the fuzzy glowy blob above it, and has no texture, I bet it is not the moon but the sun itself.