the moon

[Pete_inthehills]

I was viewing a slim cresent moon last night. It was low down near the horizon.

It appeared to have a heat shimmer.

What was I seeing? Is it just atmospheric interference?

pete

inthehills

[vulcan]

Yes, any objects near the horizon will exhibit the shimmer that you describe. This is because you are looking obliquely through the atmosphere - imagine looking though thick glass at a steep angle. Also, the convection currents (thermals) caused by heat rising off the ground account are more apparent at this steep angle.

There is less shimmer for objects high in the sky because you are looking through less atmosphere.

[Pete_inthehills]

cheers, I thought it must have been something like that.

pete

inthehills