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Basic asronomy question
February 22, 2005 | self / vanity

Posted on 02/22/2005 6:46:42 PM PST by The Other Harry

This is fairly stupid...

I live in central / west Virgina. We have a lovely full moon here tonight.

Does that mean that everyone, everywhere on earth, has a full moon?

If you're real good, you can also tell me which way the constalations appear to rotate. (I know it is really us that is rotating, but it seems that way.)


TOPICS: Astronomy; Chit/Chat
KEYWORDS: areyoudrunkagain; icantspell; moon; stayoffthebooze; theearthisflat
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To: martin_fierro; cyborg

My TB is broven. But, I'm just back from Tiajunna, so, hey...


21 posted on 02/22/2005 8:14:00 PM PST by Petronski (Zebras: Free Range Bar Codes of the Serengeti)
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To: The Other Harry
Actually, we are not yet at a full moon... we have a gibbous moon. The full moon occurs when the Moon rises exactly as the Sun sets. The Moon rose about an hour and a half before sunset.

The Moon is said to be "full" when it is exactly opposite the apparent location of the Sun... in other words, when it is farthest away from the Sun, on the opposite side of the Earth.

In answer to your question, since everyone on Earth will be able to see the same Moon as you and I see when we look up today, it will LOOK exactly the same to them.

22 posted on 02/22/2005 8:53:42 PM PST by Swordmaker (Tagline now open, please ring bell.)
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To: Petronski; All

Are Freepers supposed to be so silly? This is the most fun I've had since the dogs ate my brother. Too bad Hunter Thompson didn't tune into you guys - he'd still be shooting at something besides himself. (Not meaning to be disrespectful.)


23 posted on 02/22/2005 9:02:23 PM PST by Mother Goose
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To: Mother Goose
This is the most fun I've had since the dogs ate my brother.

I haven't had so much fun since those dogs ate your brother either. Gawd, what an ass he was...

24 posted on 02/22/2005 9:05:56 PM PST by Petronski (Zebras: Free Range Bar Codes of the Serengeti)
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To: Mother Goose
This is the most fun I've had since the dogs ate my brother.

Oh wow. How is he now?

25 posted on 02/22/2005 9:49:07 PM PST by PistolPaknMama (Will work for cool tag line.)
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To: Lonesome in Massachussets

Nice GIF


26 posted on 02/23/2005 6:55:25 AM PST by hattend (Liberals! Beware the Perfect Rovian Storm [All Hail the Evil War Monkey King, Chimpus Khan!])
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To: stainlessbanner
Put one foot on the floor if the sky is spinning.

Ahhhh the things we learned in college.

27 posted on 02/23/2005 6:57:36 AM PST by Drango (NPR/PBS is the propaganda wing of the DNC.)
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To: The Other Harry

Hey, not sure if you got an answer on your second question, so here goes...

Imagine a globe in a dark room with a spotlight shining on one side. That side is daytime, the other side is nighttime. If you were standing on the line between day and night, it would be sunrise or sunset, depending on which side you're on. Imagine you turn the globe so that you (in Virginia) are right on the line. California is still lit up by the sun, while the Atlantic Ocean is dark. Now, as the earth rotates, the rest of the US will find itself in darkness as the sun sets in the west.

So, we'll set it back up so that Virginia is right on the "terminator" -- that line between light and dark. If you looked straight up in the night sky, that would be exactly the same as going straight out from the globe. If you look west, you see the spotlight, or our sun, while it's dark to the east.

Now, imagine as the globe turns and plunges the rest of the US into darkness.... Stop when Virginia is directly opposite the sun.... It's now midnight in Virginia. When you look "straight up," you're no longer looking at the same constellations as you were when you looked "straight up" at sunset.... those constellations would now be on the western horizon.

If you go on to sunrise, looking "straight up" points in another, completely different, direction. Now, those stars that were up at midnight are now on the western horizon, and the sun is on the eastern horizon. Continue turning and you'll see the sun move across the sky in the same way.

Hope that helps some.


28 posted on 02/23/2005 9:12:36 AM PST by mwyounce
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To: joshhiggins
I agree Phil Hendrie is better. Unfortunately the only station I have found that carries him is some 50,000 watt blow torch in NewYork that carries to Iowa when the sky is clear like tonight. Some of his guests are so obnoxious. They make me so mad. It's probably better for my blood pressure that I can't listen to him regularly. ;)

Since -- unlike me -- you spelled Hendrie's name correctly, I assume you realize that he *is* his guests.

29 posted on 02/23/2005 11:04:30 AM PST by The Other Harry
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To: PistolPaknMama

[Oh wow. How is he now?]


Feeling a little down in the mouth.


30 posted on 02/23/2005 11:06:59 AM PST by turnrightnow (keeper's mom)
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To: trumandogz

You guys are great! This is the funniest thread I've ever read on Free Republic.


31 posted on 02/23/2005 11:09:18 AM PST by turnrightnow (keeper's mom)
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To: The Other Harry

Never mind...

I misread your second question as "why" do the constellations rotate, not "which way" do they.... Oh well...


32 posted on 02/23/2005 1:08:34 PM PST by mwyounce
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To: newgeezer

Now that is one funny title.


33 posted on 02/23/2005 1:11:39 PM PST by biblewonk (Neither was the man created for woman but the woman for the man.)
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To: Lonesome in Massachussets

That is one of the coolest things I've seen in a long time. Thanks for posting it!


34 posted on 02/23/2005 1:13:49 PM PST by r9etb
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To: Lonesome in Massachussets; biblewonk

Thanks for making worthwhile this otherwise sorry-*ss*d thread. ;O)


35 posted on 02/23/2005 2:09:04 PM PST by newgeezer (Just my opinion, of course. Your mileage may vary.)
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To: The Other Harry
Oh, I thought it was "Full Moon over Miami"!! :-)
36 posted on 02/24/2005 2:12:25 PM PST by Soaring Feather
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To: The Other Harry

Or ~Moon River~Andy Williams~

37 posted on 02/24/2005 2:18:38 PM PST by Soaring Feather
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To: The Other Harry; Old Sarge; Colonel_Flagg

Nope it ain't in here!!
Only half of it!

38 posted on 02/24/2005 2:21:12 PM PST by Soaring Feather
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To: Lonesome in Massachussets; The Other Harry

Ooooh, nice graphic. In answer to the original question, the phase of the Moon will be just a tad earlier or later relative to another point of longitude.

sort of related, from Jack Horkheimer...

RealPlayer file:
http://www.miamisci.org:8080/ramgen/stargazer/SG0503M.rm?usehostname

"Horkheimer: Next Tuesday the 25th we'll see the smallest full Moon of the year. And if you've got a camera you can conduct your own fun experiment. The Moon will be officially full at 5:32 a.m. Tuesday morning at which time it will be the farthest and smallest full moon of the year, almost 252,000 miles away. Just for fun take a picture of it with a zoom lens. Then next July 21st when we'll have the closest full Moon of the year, almost 30,000 miles closer, take another picture. Cut them in half, lay them side by side and you'll see a huge difference because July's full Moon will be 13% larger than next week's full Moon. Vive la difference! And Keep Looking Up!"


39 posted on 03/09/2005 11:19:53 PM PST by SunkenCiv (last updated my FreeRepublic profile on Sunday, February 20, 2005.)
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To: Swordmaker

d'ja ever have a IIgs?

http://www.umich.edu/~archive/apple2/gs/gsos/nda/
http://www.umich.edu/~archive/apple2/gs/gsos/nda/moonphase.bsq


40 posted on 03/09/2005 11:22:29 PM PST by SunkenCiv (last updated my FreeRepublic profile on Sunday, February 20, 2005.)
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