Quarter 2 Biography Sources

Nevil Maskelyne:

http://janus.lib.cam.ac.uk/db/node.xsp?id=EAD%2FGBR%2F0180%2FRGO%204
(This website contains information about all the papers and research which Maskelyne kept.)

http://www-history.mcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/Biographies/Maskelyne.html
(The sources at the bottom of this page will be helpful, especially the three articles which can probably be located online.)

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/367964/Nevil-Maskelyne

http://www.maskelynebicentenary.org.uk/

APOD 2.6 Earth at Night

7 Dec 2012 Earth at Night

This image is a combination of pictures taken over 9 days in April and 13 days in October of 2012.  There is no cloud coverage blocking any portion of this image which took 312 orbits to acquire.  The technology used to take these pictures is known as VIIRS which is a radiometer and is the most advanced piece of technology used to date to collect this type of nighttime image.  

I found this image very interesting because it shows the concentrations of cities and clearly demonstrates which countries use the most power at night and contribute the most to the growing problem of light pollution.  The Eastern portion of the United States as well as parts of Europe and China seem to be lit up the most.  I have seen similar images of Earth from space at night but never with this much clarity and detail.  

This image is obviously superior to past night-time images of the Earth which can be viewed here:

http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Features/NightLights/

Planning for Observation Session on 12/9

1.  M29 the "Cooling Tower"  open cluster in Cygnus
2.  NGC 6995 in Cygnus (nebula)
3.  Dumbell Nebula in Vulpecula (M27)
4.  NGC 205 (M110) Galaxy
5.  Saturn Neblua (C55)
6.  M32 Galaxy in Andromeda
7.  NGC 6738 Star Group
8.  Blue Snowball Nebula C22
9.  the "double double" we viewed last stargazing session
10.  Coat Hanger Cluster

APOD 2.5 Clouds in Cygnus

November 30, 12 Clouds in Cygnus

    The clouds visible in this interesting image are made up of interstellar dust and gas in the direction of the constellation Cygnus.  I found this picture intriguing because we are studying Cygnus as one of our constellations and it is one that I can usually easily identify in the night sky.  The bright star near the left of the image is Deneb, part of the Northern Cross.  The dark spot in the center of this picture is known as the Northern Coal Sack.  Also, NGC 7000 (North America nebulae) and IC 5070 (Pelican nebulae) are featured here.  

    Some other visible nebulas are the Crescent Nebula and the Tulip Nebula (towards the top of the image).  

Constellation Quizzes

http://www.uni.edu/morgans/ajjar/Constellations/quiz/ra18.html
This is the best quiz I found although we haven't learned all the stars they ask for.

http://www.kapoleims.k12.hi.us/campuslife/extracurricular/techquest/Stars/StarsandConstellations/MAINquiz.htm
This quiz is very frustrating but pretty informative as well.

Observation 1 (Quarter 2) Star Gazing Session

Nov 18th Star Gazing Session

    On November 18th at the star gazing session at Pine View, the moon was waxing crescent and was fairly bright, making the sky to the South slightly harder to see.  Rising around the NE was Jupiter which appeared very bright.  When we viewed it through the telescope, we could see all four moons and the weather bands.  

    We identified many constellations and tried to see a very bright satellite which was supposed to be passing overhead.  We thought we saw the satellite but it turned out to be a plane.  

    Through our binoculars, we viewed the coat hanger cluster along with a few other clusters and binary stars.  

    Through the telescopes we saw, in addition to Jupiter's moons and weather bands, the "double double" stars.  Also, we got to move around the hand powered telescope to view the entirety of a star cluster up close.  

    The sky was very clear that night with no clouds and the trees and buildings blocked the light from Sarasota which helped to increase the darkness and viewing ability.  

APOD 2.4 Meteor and Moonbow over Wallaman Falls

November 12, 2012 APOD

    Although hard to believe at first glance, this picture was taken at night.  The image is illuminated by the rising moon behind the camera.  This picture was taken in Queensland, Australia.  Queensland is in the North East of Australia and its capital is Brisbane.  Specifically, this waterfall is Wallaman Falls and has a 268 meter drop.  It is the highest waterfall in Australia.

    The moonbow visible was produced by light reflecting off of the surface of the moon.  They always appear opposite the moon in the sky and are fairly faint.  Sometimes, because they are so faint, moonbows appear white to the naked eye.  Long exposure photography helps to enhance the appearance of color in moonbows.  

   Also, in the center of this photo there is a line which was created by an airplane.  Above and to the right of that, the long almost vertical streak was created by a meteor.  This image is taken with the camera directed toward the center of the Milky Way Galaxy.  The cloudy region in the sky in this photo is the Milky Way Galaxy.

APOD 2.3 Melotte 15 In the Heart

November 9th Melotte 15 In The Heart

    

    This image shows a nebula called IC 1805 and is located in the star cluster also known as Melotte 15.  The cluster is relatively young at only 1.5 million years of age.  The Melotte Catalog of Star Clusters was created by Philibert Jacques Melotte in 1915.  He took a previously created photographic atlas of the sky produced by John Franklin-Adams and documented where the clusters were located in the catalog.  The catalog by Melotte includes open and globular clusters which can be seen through most astronomical equipment.  

    This image features a colorful sky with dark clouds made up of interstellar dust.  This picture is of about 30 light-years of the sky and different elements are highlighted in different colors.  Green represents Hydrogen, red sulfur, and oxygen blue.  If observed with a wider field of view, this nebula appears to be heart shaped, hence its name.  

    This nebula is located 7,500 light-years away in the direction of Cassiopeia.  This picture caught my eye because it is similar to the image on the cover of our Astronomy textbooks.

APOD 2.2 Lenticular Clouds Over Washington

Nov 4 2012: Lenticular Clouds Over Washington

    Lenticular clouds are clouds with a lens shape.  They usually form at high altitudes when stable moist air passes over a mountain.  Also, they normally shape themselves at a right angle to the wind.  The ones in this picture are multilayered which creates the tornado like effect that is visible.  The water droplets in this image have cooled below the dew point and condensed into the clouds pictured.  The particles in clouds are also called aerosols.  This image was taken from Seattle, Washington in December of 2008.  The mountain seen is Mt. Rainier which is 14,411 ft tall at its peak.  It is actually a volcano and is considered to be one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world.  There are normally about 5 earthquakes observed per month around the volcano.

APOD 2.1 The Medusa Nebula

APOD 2.1 The Medusa Nebula

    The Medusa Nebula is in the constellation Gemini and is named after Medusa because of the lines which resemble braids glowing in the center of the image.  Spanning about 4 million light years and located about 1,500 light years away from us, this nebula is also known as Abell 21.  Medusa is a character from Greek mythology who is a monster with snakes for hair.  When someone looked her in the eye, they would turn to stone.  This nebula is an example of a planetary nebula which is formed when the center of a star heats excessively and the outer portion of the star is "blown away" in a stellar wind.  The glowing effect we see is a result of the heat generated by the star and the ultraviolet radiation it is emitting.  This star is transforming from a red giant, a star in a fairly late stage of its life, into a hot white dwarf star.     

APOD 1.8 A Spiral Nebula Surrounding Star R Sculptoris

APOD 1.7 A Spiral Nebula Star Surrounding Star R Sculptoris

    

    This star, R Sculptoris, is a red giant star.  The red circles surrounding it is a very unusual spiral which was discovered with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA).  This is the first time such a spiral has been observed in three-dimensions.  The ALMA telescope is the most powerful of its kind in the world.  The spiral is made up of material coming out of the star and will contribute to the dust and gas in the universe which will create future stars.  It is suspected that there is a binary star close by to R Sculptoris which it is ejecting this material towards.  Astronomers hope to discover more about how stars as large as this one evolve at the end of their lives.  Also, they think they will gain insight into how the elements making up the Earth reached our planet.  This star is in the constellation "The Sculptor," near Aquarius.  

Chapter 5 Outline

Chapter 5 Outline

• Optical Telescopes
• telescope: "light bucket", captures photons and concentrates them into a beam
• Optical telescopes collect visible wavelengths
• Refracting and Reflecting Telescopes
• refraction: bending of a beam of light as it passes from one medium to another (straw in water looks bent)
• refracting telescope: uses lens to concentrate beam of light and pass it through the focus (single point), distance between primary mirror and focus = focal length
• Reflecting telescope: uses mirror (not lens) to focus light. Mirror called primary mirror, focus of primary mirror = prime focus
• telescopes make images of their field of view, often very small
• Comparing Refractors and Reflectors
• reflecting better because:
• lens focuses red and blue light differently (chromatic abberation)
• some light absorbed by glass of lens (worse for infared)
• large lenses heavy, lenses deform under own weight
• lens has 2 surfaces (versus 1 of mirror) to polish and maintain
• Largest refractor at Yerkes Obs. in Wisconsin, lens 1m diameter, relfecting have 10m
• Types of Refracting Telescope
• light often intercepted on path to focus so light intercepted on way to secondary mirror
• Newtonian Telescope: light intercepted before it reaches prime focus and deflected 90 degrees to eyepiece, uncommen in large instruments
• Cassegrain telescope: light reflected by primary mirror to prime focus, intercepted by 2ndary mirror, reflected down small hole back to primary; point behind primary mirror where light ultimately converges = Cassegrain focus
• with more than 2 mirrors, light reflected to Nasmyth focus or into coude ("bent") room which is a separate observatory
• Hubble Space Telescope (HST) is a Cassegrain telescope with all instruments behind primary mirror
• Telescope Size
• size has increased because that increases the amount of light it can collect (light-gathering power) and the detail (resolving power)
• Light-Gathering Power
• larger telescope = greater collecting area (total area capable of collecting radiation), have larger reflecting mirrors (refracting lens)
• observed brightness directly proportional to area of telescope's mirror (square of mirror diameter) (5m telescope 25X brighter than 1m)
• also direct. prop. to time it takes telescope to gather light
• Mauna Kea has small atmospheric interference, good observation point
• largest telescope in European Southern Observatory: optical-infared Very Large Telescope (VLT) - 4 different 8.2m mirrors
• Resolving Power
• resolution: ability of device to form distinct images of objects close together
• diffraction (tendency of light to bend) limits resolution, creates fuzziness
• Circular mirror:  angular resolution (arcsec) = .25(wavelength/diameter) when 1 micron = 10^-6 m
• diffraction increases in prop. to wavelength used (diffraction-limited resolution)
• Images and Detectors
• Image Acquisition
• charge-coupled devices (CCDs): electronic detectors used to take "pictures", made up of pixels, charges build up on pixels and 2-D image results
• advantages of photos: more efficient (90% of photons recorded), quicker, in digital format
• Image Processing
• computers reduce "background noise", can correct instrumental problems
• Wide-Angle Views
• as angle light enters increases, accuracy of focus decreases (effect = coma)
• Photometry
• measurement of brightness
• add up values in CCD pixels
• use colored filters to limit wavelengths measured
• can determine objects temperature
• photometer: used for high accuracy rapid measurements of light intensity
• Spectroscopy
• works with optical telescopes

Observation 5

I have observed over the past few weeks that every morning, the sun appears to rise further to the South.

I observed this because when I am driving to school, at the beginning of the year when I was at the stoplight in Venice facing the Blu Cafe, the sun was directly in my eyes.  Now, every morning at the same time (7:55 am), the sun is at the other end of the restaurant and no longer in my eyes. 

Observation 4 Star Gazing Session

    On October 9th, I went to the observation session at Casey Key Fish-house from 8-10 PM.  During this time, the sky was clear but there was some light pollution in the direction of Sarasota (North).

    My favorite observation of the night was of the Andromeda Galaxy, also known as M31.  It is the only other galaxy visible through binoculars and appeared as a fuzzy, roughly circular object.  It is in the constellation Andromeda.  I also observed several satellites during the night and 4 meteors.
    I identified many constellations including Sagittarius, Scorpius, Hercules, Ursa Minor, Lyra, Corona Borealis, Aquila, Delphinus, and many more.  In Lyra, I observed the binary star known as the Epsilon Lyrae pair.  This appears as one bright star to the naked eye but when viewed with binoculars can clearly be seen to be binary.
    I also viewed two star clusters, one that appeared to be in Sagittarius and another through the telescope.  These star clusters contain thousands of stars.  Some other stars which I identified were Antares, Altair, and Vega.
   

APOD 1.7 Pan-STARRS and Nebulae

    This image was taken using the world's most powerful sky survey instrument.  It is both a camera and telescope built and operated by Pan-STARRS, the Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System.  It was built in order to monitor near-earth asteroids that could pose a threat.  This institution is also researching how these dangerous objects could be deflected using spacecrafts.  The camera on this telescope is 1.4 gigapixels.  This picture is of an area of the sky close to Sagittarius showing the Lagoon Nebula (M8), the Trifid Nebula (M20), and NGC 6559.  These three nebulae make up the "Sagittarius Triplet."  The color in this photo has been altered, showing normally red emission in green.  This image shows about 3 degrees of the night sky.

Johannes Hevelius Biography

Johannes Hevelius

    Johannes Hevelius was born to Abraham Howelcke and Cordelia Hecker on the 28^th of January, 1611.  He was born in Danzig Poland which is located on the Baltic Sea.  Hevelius is of German and Czech descent and grew up speaking mostly German but also learning a bit of Polish in his community.  His name is often disputed as it has many pronunciations and spellings including Hevel, Hewel, Hofelius, Hovelius, and many more.  Hevelius is the most commonly used today.  He had three brothers and six sisters although he was the only son in the family to survive to adulthood.

            Growing up, Johannes was well off because his father was a wealthy brewer.  When Johannes was six, his parents sent him to a school named Gymnasium near his hometown.  He attended Gymnasium for six years until the school was closed because the Thirty Years War was going on at the time.  Next, Hevelius was sent to a school in Bromberg.  This was challenging for Hevelius because they spoke Polish there but he quickly picked up the language.  During his years of education, Hevelius was particularly drawn towards math, always having a passion for the subject.  He was greatly influenced and inspired by a math teacher, Peter Kruger, who taught him to make his own observational instruments.  At the age of nineteen, Hevelius moved to Holland where he began studying law but still found time to pursue optics and mechanics.  After receiving his law education, he travelled and lived for a short time in London until 1634 when he was called back to continue the family brewery which his father could no longer operate due to illness.

            Once he returned to Danzig, Hevelius married a woman named Katharina in 1635 and maintained the brewery.  After a few years, he was once again inspired to pursue astronomy by two successive events.  First, he went to visit his dying math teacher, who had initially instilled in him his love of astronomy, who once again urged the bright Hevelius to study his passion.  Shortly after this, Hevelius witnessed a solar eclipse on June 1^st, 1639.  His dreams of studying astronomy were rejuvenated and his wife Katharina assisted him in his studies by practically taking over the brewery to give him time to study and make observations.   In 1662, however, his wife Katharina died.  Within a year he married a sixteen year old, Elizabetha.  Elizabetha shared a passion for astronomy and   assisted him more directly than Katharina in his studies.  Hevelius and Elizabetha had three children together, two sons and a daughter.  Only their daughters survived. 

            Johannes Hevelius had always hoped to be able to create a star catalog but found his efforts hindered by the fact that he was lacking instruments.  He began building his own instruments, most notably his long telescopes utilizing the technology of refraction.  The longest telescope he created was about 150 feet long.  His self-created observatory was named Sternenburg and was above other people’s houses.  His observations include the phases of Mercury.  He was eventually successful in creating a star catalog, as he had hoped, including in it 1,564 stars and their positions.  The catalog was named Prodomus Astronomiae.  He discovered and named a star of his own, Mira, located in Cetus.  In addition, he discovered Nova 1670 Cygni.  He also discovered and ovserved comets from his observatory.  He used the positions of sunspots throughout a four year period to almost accurately calculate the solar rotational period.  Although all of these are notable accomplishments, Hevelius’ most well-known feat was his publication of Selenographia.  This is a book of observations spanning ten years detailing maps of the Moon.  It included both the Moon’s phases and estimates of Lunar mountain heights.  Hevelius was the first individual to calculate the heights of Lunar mountains.  The book included 60 pictures of the Moon containing much detail. 

            Unfortunately, in 1679 a fire destroyed Hevelius’ observatory.  All of his instruments, printings, and records were lost.  The only thing saved was his star catalog.  Even though Hevelius was 68 at the time of the fire, he rebuilt his observatory to continue making observations.  Throughout his life, Hevelius made money from both his father’s passed down brewery and from a pension which he received for his work in astronomy.  He was a member of the Royal Society, a scientific association, during his lifetime. He died on his birthday in 1686.  After his death, his wife Elizabetha made sure that his star catalog, nova observations, and constellation charts were published. 

Hevelius' 140 Foot Telescope

A Detailed Drawing of the Moon by Hevelius

Formal Education Group of the Space Telescope Science Institute's Office of Public Outreach.     "Johannes Hevelius." Amazing Space: Telescopes from the Ground Up. NASA, n.d. Web.      06 Oct. 2012.

O'Connor, J J, and E F Robertson. "Johannes Hevelius." History.mcs.st-and.ac.uk. School of         Mathematics and Statistics: University of St Andrews, Scotland, 2008. Web. 06 Oct.            2012. 

Kenneth Glyn Jones, 1968. The Search for the Nebulae -- II. Journal of the British Astronomical Association, Vol. 78, No. 5 (1968), p. 360-368. Section on Hevelius: p. 366. Reprinted          in: The Search for the Nebulae. Chalfont St. Giles, 1975.

Asimov, Isaac. "[171] Hevelius, Johannes." Isaac Asimov's Biographical Encyclopedia of   Science and Technology. New Revised Edition ed. N.p.: n.p., n.d. 114-15. Print.

"Hevelius, Johannes." Complete Dictionary of Scientific Biography. Vol. 6. Detroit: Charles           Scribner's Sons, 2008. 360-364. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web.

Observation 3 Blue Moon Aug 31 2012

    Although I never posted my observation until now, on August 31st I observed the blue moon from the Island of Venice.  I actually observed it twice throughout the night from two separate locations.  First, I observed it at about 8:30 from the beach and then again at about 9:30 from my house.

    From the beach, the blue moon appeared bright and there was little light pollution around so it was very clearly visible along with a few stars.  There were not very many clouds so my view of the moon was unobstructed. 

    From my house, the moon seemed even brighter because it was later at night.  There was more light pollution around my house though so no stars were visible due to the increased brighness of both the moon and streetlights.  Also, there were a few more clouds so at times the moon was behind them although it was still visible because of its brightness. 

APOD 1.6 Stars In a Dusty Sky

Stars In a Dusty Sky: 28 September 2012

    The bright star in the upper right corner of this image is Markab, otherwise known as Alpha Pegasi.  This means "the horse's sholder" in Arabic and is part of the Great Square in Pegasus.  According to myth, Pegasus was born from Medusa when she was decapitated.  Blue reflection nebulae are also visible in the image.  Blue reflection nebulae are clouds of interstellar dust; visible because of their reflection of nearby stars's light.  Near the center of this picture, the distant edge-on spiral NGC 7497 can be seen.  This is a spiral galaxy.  I found this photo interesting because of the blue reflection nebulae and the extremely bright star in the upper right (Markab).

Observation 2 27 Sept 2012

Observation 2 27th Sept. 2012

    At my house on the Island of Venice, I made the following observations at about 9:00.

    The skies were mostly clear except for a few Cirrus clouds around the moon.  Also, the baseball park near my house left their field-lights on so the stars to the south were not very visible.  

    I identified Sagittarius first by finding the teapot shape.  Then, using my star app I found Arctures (also known as M5) and then the star Vega in Lyra.  Scorpius was visible and using the app I identified Antares and Altair within it.  Last, I found Andromeda.  The moon was very close to full; the next full moon will be Sunday the 29th.  

Johannes Hevelius Biography Sources

Johannes Hevelius Biography

Sources:

"Hevelius, Johannes." Complete Dictionary of Scientific Biography. Vol. 6. Detroit: Charles Scribner's      

     Sons, 2008. 360-364. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web.

"Hevelius, Johannes." Complete Dictionary of Scientific Biography. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. Web.

APOD 1.5 A Space Shuttle Over Los Angeles

A Space Shuttle Over Los Angeles: 26 Sept 2012

    On September 21st, the space shuttle Endeavour made its last flight and landed at LAX.  It was carried atop a Boeing 747 from Florida to California on a three day journey.  It is now located in the California Science Center museum where it will be on display starting in October.  In order to move the spacecraft, 400 trees had to be cut down in LA.  People who live in LA were not told in advance of the plan to cut down the trees and now the streets are left with hundreds less mature trees than before.  This will substantially affect the air quality, which is already poor, in LA as even though they plan to replace the trees, the newly planted ones will be smaller and take decades to mature.  The California Science Center has offered to plant new trees, repair sidewalks, and offer scholarships and job training to make up for the lost plants which the residents are upset about.

APOD 1.4 September's Aurora

September's Aurora: 21 Sept 2012

The day after this picture was taken (September 21st) marked the Autumnal Equinox.  The Autumnal Equinox occurs when the sun crosses the descending node on the Celestial Equator.  During the times near equinoxes, auroras tend to be more spectacular.  This picture was taken on the coast of Norway along the sea coast.  Although it does not appear so from Earth, the lines in an aurora are parallel.  Polaris is visible in this image to the upper right of the palm tree.  Also, in the green area in the lower left of the image, Altair (a star in the constellation Aquila) can be seen.  

Observation 1: Sept 12

September 12th: Venus and the Moon

At about 12:00 PM I observed Venus through a telescope from campus.  Venus appeared very bright in the telescope and was roughly round.  Also, I observed the Moon through binoculars (also from campus).  The Moon was in its waning crescent phase and was very visible through both the binoculars and with the naked eye.

At about 1:00 PM, I again observed the Moon through binoculars.  It was still very visible; its appearance had not changed.  Also, without telescope or binoculars, I observed the Moon and Venus. The Moon was fairly high in the sky and Venus was approximately 4.5 degrees (2/3 of my fist) to the north east (from my position) of the Moon.  The Moon was not difficult to locate with the naked eye but Venus was fairly hard to find.  I found it by imagining a line drawn between the tips of the crescent moon and extended out.  .

This is approximately how the Moon and Venus appeared to me except Venus was much fainter because I made my observation during the day

APOD 1.3 M7 Open Star Cluster in Scorpius

M7 Open Star Cluster in Scorpius: 14 Sept 2012

An open star cluster is a group of stars held together by gravity.  The star cluster pictured above, located in Scorpius, is one of the most visible in the night sky.  The myth surrounding the constellation Scorpius is that he was sent to kill Orion by the Earth goddess Gaia after Orion attempted to kill all of the animals on Earth.  This star cluster is located in the tail of the scorpion and is commonly referred to as M7.  The star cluster is about 1000 light years away and contains around 100 stars.  Ptolemy observed this star cluster in 130 AD, before it was numbered by Messier.

The Big 5: Capernican Revolution

Nicolaus Copernicus initiated the Copernican Revolution.  He published a book called On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Sphere in which he claimed that the Earth is not the center of the universe and that we, on Earth, do not see the universe from a special perspective.  He started the revolution but did not provide evidence which proved Ptolemy’s previous theory wrong.

Tycho Brahe developed the Tychonic system proving the heavenly spheres were not physical objects but mathematical devices.  The evidence pointing to this was that comets and planets pass through each other’s spheres.  Also, his observations became the basis of Johannes Kepler’s laws of planetary motion. 

Johannes Kepler developed a new model including planetary orbits as ellipses.

Galileo Galilei observed the phases of Venus and those of Jupiter’s moons proving that the Moon’s orbit is not uniquely anomalous. 

Giordano Bruno was a writer who claimed the universe is unending.  He believed that distant stars were suns. 

Isaac Newton wrote Philosophiae Naturalis which was physical proof that gravity was the force responsible for the planet’s orbits. 

APOD 1.2 M45 The Pleiades Star Cluster

M45 The Pleiades Star Cluster: 3 Sept 2012

The Pleiades Star Cluster, also known as M45, has been observed since early times because it is one of the brightest star clusters visible to the naked eye.  The cluster spans about 2 degrees and contains a total of about 500-3000 stars (depending on your source) although they are not all as bright as the seven main stars in the cluster, commonly referred to as the Seven Sisters.  This cluster is mentioned in Homer's Ilius and Odyssey and in the Bible as well.  The Pleiades are in a blue reflection nebulae and contain several faint brown dwarfs.  In the night sky, the Pleides are in the direction of the constellation Taurus. 

APOD 1.1 On A Blue Moon

On A Blue Moon: 1 Sept 2012

           On the 31^st of August, a phenomenon that is popularly (yet incorrectly) known as a ‘Blue Moon’ was visible.  Originally, Blue Moons were defined by the Maine Farmers’ Almanacs of 1819-1962 as the third full moon when four occurred in a season.  They named the third ‘Blue’ and not the fourth so that the fourth would retain its name such as the moon Before/After Yule which tells its time of occurrence relative to the equinox or solstice.  This definition was replaced by the modern one in 1946 when Sky and Telescope published an article by an amateur astronomer who incorrectly cited the almanac as calling a full moon Blue when it was the second in one month.  After Sky and Telescope and several other astronomical radio stations and magazines repeated this claim and referenced the article, the new meaning stuck.

            This picture was taken in Nottingham, UK and the photographer slightly enhanced the colors using Photoshop.  In the lower left corner of the image, the ray crater Tycho is visible.  Its rays are very prominent because it is one of the youngest craters on the near side of the Moon.  Also, just to the right of the center, the Sea of Tranquility is visible and even appears blue.