Moon – Page 52 – Astronomy Sketch of the Day

Sunrise Ray

Pitatus and Hesiodus in the Morning
By Frank McCabe

Pitatus and Hesiodus in the Morning

On this evening I was able to take full advantage of a break in the weather with
the nearly nine day old moon high in my southern sky. As luck would have it
craters Pitatus (98km.) and Hesiodus (44km.) were positioned in full light beyond
the sunrise terminator and displaying some of their best features. What initially
caught my eye was the famous “sunrise ray” beaming across the floor of Hesiodus
through a break in the northwestern wall. This sun ray play was underway for about
45 minutes before I began this sketch. Partially illuminated near the floor center
of Hesiodus was little crater D with much of its rim reflecting sunlight. Hesiodus
and its larger neighbor Pitatus are both ancient worn Nectarian period craters on
the south border of Mare Nubium. Pitatus is a floor fractured crater with lava
having flooded the floor through the many cracks especially near the inner walls.
Most of Rimae Pitatus was in shadow at the time of this observation and the low
elongated central peak was dazzling in the sunlight. Although the shallow floor of this
crater was in light, the lava on the floor is dark and in places is interrupted by
brighter regions. The entire floor is mostly smooth and gradually rises and falls
especially close to the inner rim. For me the view was about as good as it gets in lunar observing.

Sketching:

For this sketch I used: black Strathmore 400 Artagain paper, 12”x 9”, white and
black Conte’pastel pencils and a blending stump. Brightness was slightly decreased
after scanning.

Telescope: 10 inch f/5.7 Dobsonian and 9mm eyepiece 161x
Date: 1-17-2008 0:05-1:15 UT
Temperature: -1°C (30°F)
partly cloudy, slight but cold wind
Seeing: Antoniadi III
Co longitude: 21.2°
Lunation: 8.8 days
Illumination: 66.4 %

Lunar Icon

The Lunar Crater Copernicus
By Eric Graff

Copernicus

Lunar Impact Crater

Parks Astrolight EQ6 • 6″ f/6 Newtonian Reflector
7.5mm Parks Gold Series Plössl + 2x Barlow • 240x
Field of View Not to Scale
21 September 2007 • 02:05-03:15 UT

This iconic lunar crater presents a truly majestic sight perched on the terminator of the nine-day-old Moon. The complex features of the crater floor are completely lost in shadow, but the crater walls stand out in fantastic relief, clearly exhibiting the famously terraced slopes. These terraces are believed to have formed from massive landslides of debris dug out by the impact that has collapsed and subsided. The ejecta blanket surrounding the crater is visible on the preceding (sunlit) side; radial features extending from the south-preceding crater wall are believed to be grooves blasted out of the surrounding terrain at the time of impact.

A few small, hill-like features dot the region just south of Copernicus. To the north a more extensive region of hills and mountains known as Montes Carpatus, extends about 400 kilometers in an east-west direction, forming the southern boundary of Mare Imbrium. The roughly circular feature amidst these mountains, due north of Copernicus is 26 km wide crater Gay-Lussac.

Copernicus is named in honor of the great Polish astronomer Nicholas Copernicus whose heliocentric theory of the solar system published in De Revolutionibus Orbium Celestium provided one of the cornerstones of modern astronomy. The crater itself has a diameter of 93 kilometers, and a depth of 3760 meters. Copernicus is noted for its dramatically terraced walls, relatively flat floor and a group of central peaks (with heights up to 1200 meters). The ramparts of the outer walls rise 900 meters above the surrounding plain of Mare Insularum. Only 800-900 million years old, Copernicus is relatively young by the Moon’s standards and remarkably well preserved.

Semiannual Lunar Ritual

Vallis Schröteri and environs
By Jeremy Perez

And so, in the spirit of completing one Lunar sketch and observation every 6 months or so, I present Vallis Schröteri. On the night I made this observation, I was very impressed by the rugged terrain in the vicinity of this sinuous rille. The whole area looked like a badly skinned knee in merciful shades of gray. Although Vallis Schröteri was the celebrity, a few other features played staring roles. Mons Herodotus shone brilliantly while the craters Herodotus and Aristarchus stared out like spectacled eyes with the teardrop of Väisälä glistening on the burnished cheek of a nearby highland. Further to the north, Montes Agricola embraced the region like the tip of a rattlesnake’s tail.

There was so much to observe and sketch, I couldn’t possibly capture it all. I did learn from my previous attempts at white on black Conté sketching and went for a larger illustration. This sketch was prepared on a 9″ x 12″ sheet of black Canson Mi Tientes pastel paper. I used a blending stump to smooth the pastel where appropriate and to build up brighter tones. The brightest rims are straight attacks with the Conté pencil. The sketch took about 45 minutes at the eyepiece with another 15 minutes of additional touch-up indoors. White on black sketching is really a great way to tackle the moon–especially the terminator. I hope to keep working at it when time permits. I’ll still be using pencil and charcoal, but it’s nice to have this method accessible when I want it.

Object Information:

Vallis Schröteri is the largest sinuous valley on the Moon. Although hidden in shadow in my sketch, this valley makes its start at a 6 km diameter crater just north of Herodotus crater and widens to 10 km. This area is sometimes referred to as the Cobra’s head. It then winds 160 km and narrows to 500 m at it’s end. The rille is likely the result of volcanic activity as a lava flow carved its winding path through the landscape. Aristarchus is a remarkably bright crater with a pronounced ray system. It is 40 km in diameter and is believed to be a relatively young 450 million years old.

Subject Vallis Schröteri and Surroundings
Classification Sinuous Valley, Craters and Mountains
Position West
Phase/Age 11.7 Days
Size* Vallis Schröteri: 160 km length x 1000 m depth (max)
Herodotus: 35 km dia
Aristarchus: 40 km dia x 3000 m depth
Väisälä: 8 km dia
Dorsum Niggli: 50 km length
Montes Agricola: 160 km length
Mons Herodotus: 5 km dia

Date/Time April 28, 2007, 10:00 PM MST (April 29, 2007, 05:00 UT)
Observing Loc. Flagstaff, AZ – Home
Instrument Orion SVP 6LT Reflector (150 mm dia./1200 mm F/L)
Eyepieces/Mag. 10 mm + 2X Barlow (240X)
Conditions Partly cloudy, calm
Seeing Ant. III
Sources Atlas of the Moon by Antonín Rükl 2004; Observing the Moon by Gerald North 2000.
* Based on published data.

Sunken Yet Uplifted

The lunar crater Posidonius
By Frank McCabe

Posidonius on the Eastern Shore of the Sea of Serenity

On this cold morning in early December the most eye-catching crater resting on the
concave sloping rim of Mare Serenitatis was 96 kilometer diameter Posidonius. The
Posidonius cratering event likely occurred 150 thousand years or more after
Serenitatis formed a ring basin. The subsequent floor uplift and fracturing within
Posidonius created a large angular block and ridge margin that you can see arching
parallel along and just inside the outer eastern crater rim. At 17.5 days into the
lunation, the floor of Posidonius appeared much brighter than the dark margin lava
of Serenity. Eleven kilometer crater A near the center of Posidinius was clearly
visible in the poor seeing as were craters B, J, and M arching out from the rim to
the north. Beyond these craters encircled by the Lake of Dreams is 25 by 30 km.
oval “island crater” Daniell, formed by a shallow angle impact before the greater
Posidonius event took place. South from Posidonius and again along the shore of
Serenity is the 63 km. flooded crater LeMonnier. Nearly all of the west rim of this
tilted crater and its floor are covered by the dark margin lava of the Sea of
Serenity.

Sketching:

2H graphite pencil on 5 x 8 inch index card
Date: 12-8-2006 11:30 to 12:15 UT
Temperature: -14 °C (6° F)
clear, cold winds
Pickering scale: 3/10
10 inch f / 5.7 Dobsonian 161X
Colongitude:127.5°
Lunation: 17.6 days
Illumination: 86.3 %

Frank McCabe

Ancient Crater Messala

Messala and environs
By Frank McCabe

Clear windless sky during the day and at night with temperatures just above the
freezing point of water, these are ideal weather conditions in winter for the
Midwestern USA. The waning gibbous moon was bright and high at midnight following
Mars across the celestial hemisphere. Through my 10” telescope I zeroed in on the
region north of Mare Crisium. I then turned on the drive platform and began
sketching the region of the terminator centered on ancient pre-Nectarian age
crater Messala (126 km.). This walled plain crater in the waning sunlight was
showing off its rubble covered irregular floor and battered walls. Although the
seeing was not the best, which stopped me from sketching Mars, this region of the
lunar northwest was putting on a good show. The floor in addition to being lava
covered, irregular and dark, appears slightly convex or domed. To the southwest
large much younger crater Geminus ( 88 km.) with its central peak just beyond the
shadowed floor was showing
its greater depth and terraced walls. Bernoulli (50 km.) closer to the terminator
is filled with shadow too. Touching Messala to the north is Schumacher (63 km.)
with its dark smooth floor and beyond the apron of this crater northward is ancient
Lacus Temporis (Lake of Time). To the southwest of Lacus Temporis are the ancient
craters Shuckburgh (41 km.) and then Hooke (37 km.).

Sketching:

For this sketch I used: black Strathmore 400 Artagain paper, 12”x 9”, white and
black Conte’pastel pencils and a blending stump. Brightness was slightly decreased
after scanning.

Telescope: 10 inch f/5.7 Dobsonian and 9mm eyepiece 161x
Date: 12-26-2007 5:30-7:00 UT
Temperature: 0°C (32°F)
clear, calm
Seeing: Antoniadi III
Co longitude: 113.7°
Lunation: 16.6 days
Illumination: 93.3 %

Rugged, Majestic, and Arcuate

The Montes Apenninus
By Eric Graff

Lunar Mountain Range

Parks Astrolight EQ6 * 6″ f/6 Newtonian Reflector

6mm Parks Kellner + 4x Barlow * 600x, ~4′ Field of View

19 October 2007 * 01:35-03:50 UT

The largest lunar mountain range; the majestic Montes Apenninus extend 600
kilometers around the south preceding (sp) rim of Mare Imbrium. The highest peaks
exceed 5000 meters. The Apollo 15 mission landed at the foot of this range.

This observation shows the north-preceding (np) end of this range extending from the
lunar terminator at the first quarter phase (7-day-old moon). The prominent crater
near the center of the field of view is 22 kilometer-wide Conon, noted for its sharp
rim. Prominent peaks of the range shown here include Mons Ampère (near the sf edge
of the field of view), Mons Huygens (5600 m), Mons Bradley (5000 m, very prominent,
following Conon), an apparently nameless peak north of Conon, and finally Mons
Hadley Delta and Mons Hadley (4500 m) at the np end of the range, which terminates
in Promontorium Fresnel.

An extensive range of foothills precedes the Apennines, while the following side
drops precipitously toward the floor of Mare Imbrium. A series of six small,
elongated hills runs parallel to the following side of the range. Many of the
foothills on the gently-sloping preceding side are arranged in gently curving
parallel chains sweeping southward from the higher slopes, particularly in the area
south of Conon. This “curious” uniformity of orientation is likely the result of
shock fractures induced by the Imbrium asteroid impact.

Deep in shadow, at the nf edge of the field of view are the walls of Archimedes;
Autolycus rests on the northern edge of the field, also heavily shadowed.

A Tranquil and Serene Tapestry

Mare Serenitatis and Mare Tranquillitatis
By Giorgio Bonacorsi

Hello, my name is Giorgio Bonacorsi, I live in little town named Pergola, in Marche, center Italy. My night sky is good, I live near mountain Catria(1702m). My observation site are at 3-4 minutes from home and are at 400-500 m of altitude. I go there for my sketches of galaxy and other object of deep sky,but also behind my home I have a good sky, principally for Moon, planets and comets. My instruments are: Newtonian telescope 15cm 750f, acromatic80/1000, maksutov-cassegrain 110/1035, 16×80 binocular.

Ecliptical Obliquity

Lunar crater Albategnius
By Dale Holt

I awoke not particularly early at around 6am on Saturday December 1st, well it is
the weekend! I noted a fine gibbous Moon high in the South West from the bedroom
window. Hmm I haven’t made a Lunar sketch for a while, so out I went to the
observatory with my brew of tea and spent a while scanning the terminator for a
likely subject.

I picked out Albategnius. This is an ancient lunar impact crater 129km wide and
4.4km deep located in the central highlands. It is named after the Arabic Prince
and astronomer Al-Battani. The level interior forms a “walled plain”, surrounded
by the high, terraced rim. The outer wall is somewhat hexagon-shaped, and has been
heavily eroded with impacts, valleys and landslips. It attains a height above
4,000 meters along the northeast face. The rim is broken in the southwest by the
smaller crater Klein 44km wide and 1.5km deep.

The third prominent crater featured in my drawing is Halley to the North East of
Albategnius spanning 36km at a depth of 2.5km.

Telescope 14” F5 Newtonian reflector
Denk binoviewer with 2.5x nosepiece
x2 Celestron Axiom 23mm eyepieces giving 193x

Drawing on Black A5 Daler Rowney artist paper using Derwent pastel and water
colour pencils, conte sticks, black ink and blending stumps.

The Great Black Lake of Johannes Hevelius

Plato
By Frank McCabe

After 3 weeks of cloudy nights I was anxious to get out in the moonlight to attempt some moon and Mars observing. The seeing was too poor for a good view of Mars but with the moon just past first quarter many targets were available for examination and sketching.

The selected region along the terminator for this sketch is walled plain crater Plato. Since I am viewing through a Newtonian telescope the drawing is inverted from the direct view. Plato is a beautiful 100 kilometer diameter crater with a dark, flat, thick, lava covered floor. Normally in average seeing four of the craterlets across the dark flat floor are visible but not on this night with the poor seeing conditions. Shadows of peaks created by the 2 kilometer high irregular eastern crater rim stood out across the crater floor. The enormous amount of lava flooding the crater floor has completely buried the central peaks. Although the impacting rock that created Plato more than three billion years ago came later than the much larger Imbrium impactor, the lava flooding of the region was subsequent to both events. The triangular massif on the western rim (right side) of the crater was difficult to see clearly because of the poor seeing. To the southwest of Plato across the Imbrium basin floor stands the sentinel peak Pico and on further towards the terminator westward the Teneriffe peaks. A small portion of Mare Frigoris can be seen north (below) of crater Plato.


Sketching:

For this sketch I used: black Strathmore 400 Artagain paper, 12”x 9”, white and
black Conte’pastel pencils and a blending stump. Brightness was slightly decreased
after scanning.

Telescope: 10 inch f/5.7 Dobsonian and 9mm eyepiece 161x
Date: 12-16-2007 2:30-4:00 UT
Temperature: -6°C (21°F)
partly cloudy, windy
Seeing: Antoniadi IV
Co longitude: 15°
Lunation: 8.4 days
Illumination: 58 %

Frank McCabe

The Astounding Geometry of Clavius

Clavius Crater and Craterlets
By Serge Vieillard

Clavius is the 3rd largest crater on the earth-facing side of the moon (225 km in diameter), and was formed during the Nectarian period about 4 billion years ago. It is most famous for the arc of craterlets arrayed across its floor in counterclockwise order of descending size.

Serge created this sketch on August 14, 2006, during a trip to Southern Italy. He observed the moon with his Strock 250, plotting finer details during brief moments of steadier seeing.