big moon

[estwing 5,592]

why was the moon so big tonight when it started to rise?

[j45on 11]

It looks bigger as it is close to the ground / buildings ? I think

[Cloudwatcher 66]

When the Moon or indeed the Sun are close to the horizon they tend to look bloated due to distortion by the atmosphere................or maybe not.

Edited March 8, 2012 by Cloudwatcher

[foundaplanet 951]

Have a read of this and drag the man.

HowStuffWorks "Why does the moon look so much bigger near the horizon?"

[dtr42 159]

it looks big because of perspective ie what is in front/behind it gives a larger or smaller looking moon . if you put your thumb out and block the moon from your eye it will always be covered [it's your brain's way of sorting out your sorrounding] have a read at this HowStuffWorks "Why does the moon look so much bigger near the horizon?" both figures are the same size it's how your mind perceives it

slow typing lol

Edited March 8, 2012 by dtr42

[PRG 11]

I saw it just rising over the roof tops. It was HUGE!

I know it's just an illusion, but it was fantastic.

[hemihaggis 12]

its because of the atmosphere, the lower down to the horizon the sun or moon is the more atmosphere you are looking through to view the sun/moon the more it is magnified

lol i dont know where you got the above link or where they got their "info" if you belive that you can also belive in astrology or creationisim ...

if its an optical illusion then why does it look normal sized when high up in sky ?? why does perspective stop working when its high in the sky ?? ..

. perhaps we are looking through less atmosphere ...nah i dont belive it

ps this is the best laugh i have had in ages ....

pps why also does the sun change colour when it is low down ?? is it anything to do with looking through 1000s miles of atmosphere , ..... nah it must be an optical illusion .....lol pmsl

Edited March 8, 2012 by hemihaggis

[dtr42 159]

simple test,

next time you see a full moon that looks very big extend your arm as far as it will go and put your thumb up look at the moon with 1 eye and at your thumb amazingly the moon will disapear as your thumb will block it. yet looking at it the moon is obviously a lot bigger than your thumb

[foundaplanet 951]

its because of the atmosphere, the lower down to the horizon the sun or moon is the more atmosphere you are looking through to view the sun/moon the more it is magnified

lol i dont know where you got the above link or where they got their "info" if you belive that you can also belive in astrology or creationisim ...

if its an optical illusion then why does it look normal sized when high up in sky ?? why does perspective stop working when its high in the sky ?? ..

. perhaps we are looking through less atmosphere ...nah i dont belive it

ps this is the best laugh i have had in ages ....

pps why also does the sun change colour when it is low down ?? is it anything to do with looking through 1000s miles of atmosphere , ..... nah it must be an optical illusion .....lol pmsl

Fair enough

If that is the case the why do the planets look no bigger when observed lower down in the atmosphere?

Why do they still appear the same size at say 100x and not look like they are magnified 200x?

[Rob L 13]

lol i dont know where you got the above link or where they got their "info" if you belive that you can also belive in astrology or creationisim ...

I'm not sure if you're being serious or not, it's hard to tell, if you're not and I'm missing the joke then I apologise. Everyone is entitled to their point of view but there's no need to be rude about it.

It is an optical illusion. There is a very good explanation in "The Backyard Astronomers Guide" by Terrence Dickinson and Alan Dyer.

If you don't believe it then the simplest way to demonstrate it is to take a picture of the moon when it's low in the sky and then again when it's much higher. Compare the 2 images and they moon will be exactly the same size in both. This is the case no matter where in the sky the moon appears.

[Rob L 13]

Thanks for the link dtr42 and foundaplanet, that's pretty cool

[Hobbes 126]

its because of the atmosphere, the lower down to the horizon the sun or moon is the more atmosphere you are looking through to view the sun/moon the more it is magnified

lol i dont know where you got the above link or where they got their "info" if you belive that you can also belive in astrology or creationisim ...

if its an optical illusion then why does it look normal sized when high up in sky ?? why does perspective stop working when its high in the sky ?? ..

. perhaps we are looking through less atmosphere ...nah i dont belive it

ps this is the best laugh i have had in ages ....

pps why also does the sun change colour when it is low down ?? is it anything to do with looking through 1000s miles of atmosphere , ..... nah it must be an optical illusion .....lol pmsl

I think Atmospheric distortion is not a the answer. check out this link . No idea what actually causes it but I love looking at the huge moon just above the horison.

[wingman 8]

There's no way I'm going to "bend at the waist and look at the moon through my legs" as suggested in that link. I just know someone would see me and I doubt if Plod would believe me when I explained I was looking at the moon!

Edited March 9, 2012 by wingman

[sanmatt 42]

Well I'm going to find out the answer from a really great and knowledgable astronomy forum, they will definately know....

oh wait a minute.....

[Shibby 723]

Well I'm going to find out the answer from a really great and knowledgable astronomy forum, they will definately know....

oh wait a minute.....

lol

hemihaggis, maybe we should thank you because you've provided a prime example of why this misconception is so common - it's not easy to believe that it is the same size, but it is. Such is the nature of an optical illusion. Our perception of the world around us is so easily misled and our brains so easily fooled.

To complicate things slightly, atmospheric refraction is a real thing, which does cause a slight bending of the light very close to the horizon. Believe it or not, this means that you can still see the sun/moon for a little while after it has completely dropped below the horizon! It won't make the moon appear larger though - if anything, it could squash the image a bit as can be seen in this image from space: File:Full moon partially obscured by atmosphere.jpg - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Also, the moon is a little bit further away from the observer when setting - so in fact it appears a bit smaller regardless of the refraction!

[Star Gazer 32]

Hi hemihaggis,

It's humble pie time!

[foundaplanet 951]

Hi hemihaggis,

It's humble pie time!

[182570 11]

Hi hemihaggis,

It's humble pie time!

:headbang:

[eid 29]

Hi hemihaggis,

It's humble pie time!

[Nosivad 10]

http://stargazerslounge.com/attachment.php?attachmentidhttp://stargazerslounge.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=81855&stc=1&d=1331305559=81854&stc=1&d=1331305559

Moon rise over the Med last September. As you can see, the moon looks bloated near the horizon due to diffraction( I think!) by the atmosphere. Later it is a normal disc shape. The different sizes are merely due to different zoom levels on the camera.

Edited March 9, 2012 by Nosivad

[estwing 5,592]

glad i asked...sorry i nearly started a war!