measurments

[blinky]

For the less experienced folks like me can somebody give the approximate measurments for degrees etc. I mean I read somewhere about the moon being so many degrees wide etc? Just so that when I am using my book and it says from Epsilon (think that correct) Pegasus go 2.3 N and 3.5W

Also I think there is something about an outstretched hand being roughly xxx degrees as well?

BTW Can you name the object from the refrences?

[jcm]

The only ones I vaguely remember are.

a fist ( across the knuckles ) at arms length is about 10 degrees

your little finger tip a arms length is about 0.5 degree - the size of full moon.

You could make a scale with 0.9 cm (9mm) marks on the edge and hold it about 50cm from your eye - the distance between each mark in the sky would be about 1 deg.

John

[James]

BTW Can you name the object from the refrences?

M15??

[Kenny_10_Bellys]

The ones printed all over are...

full moon / sun = half a degree (30 arc minutes)

1st finger at arms length = 1 degree

fist at arms length = 10 degrees

outstretched hand at arms length = 25 degrees pinkie to thumb

Just so we're clear, the sky is 360 degrees round with each degree being split into 60 arc-minutes and each minute split into a further 60 arc-seconds. So 1 degree = 60 arcminutes = 3600 arcseconds.

[blinky]

BTW Can you name the object from the refrences?

M15??

Yep

SO......2.3 degreen north would be around 2.5 times the size of the moon (or the size of the moon in the same EP). Thats great.

[SteveL]

the moon is 36 arcminutes wide/tall, so just over half a degree... therefore, 2.3 degrees is about 4-5 times the size of the moon. I seem to remember somewhere that the three middle fingers (like a cubs/scouts salute) is 5 degrees