Big Shiny Moon
Posted on December 12, 2008 Posted by John Scalzi 43 Comments
Last night’s full moon was bigger and brighter than most because the moon was actually closer to the Earth than it usually is, thanks to that wacky elliptical orbit it travels in. Last night it was socked in by clouds, but this morning it popped out long enough for me to grab a photo. And then it went behind the clouds again. And then it slid under the curve of the Earth. And now I’m alone. So very alone. But it was pretty while it lasted.
I enjoyed it on my drive home. I’ve lived in Florida for almost 3 years now – but I still can’t help thinking “People went from here to there.” every time I look at it. I’m in Orlando – but close enough to think of the space center as nearby.
Talk about emo…
:-x
I tried to catch the moon where I was, especially around midnight when it was supposed to be at its brightest. I glided into the rainy night and was greeted by clouds, dreary and sad. I, too, felt bereaved, alone, unwanted. The moon–so close, yet so far. Sadly, I crept back to bed and dream of coffee.
Pretty awesome. Too bad our ice/snow storm robbed us of our moon goodness.
You sure it wasn’t looking bigger for the usual reason, that it was close to the horizon when you saw it. You know how that goes, it looks bigger but it really isn’t.
That is, sure it’s really closer but is it close enough for the human eye to *really* tell the difference.
M-O-O-N… That spells moon…
Where here for ya, John. You’re never alone.
Yeah, I think it must be the latent horseshoe crab genes, but I find I always need to look for the moon when it’s up and I’m out.
Romeo. Lady, by yonder blessed moon I swear,
That tips with silver all these fruit-tree tops—
Juliet. O, swear not by the moon, the inconstant moon,
That monthly changes in her circled orb,
Lest that thy love prove likewise variable.
Or maybe this inconstant moon
you caught the moon in the *morning*? Oh gods, how early were you up? or is it ‘how late’?
It’s a pretty picture though. Eerily I wouldn’t have been able to tell which time of night it’s showing judging from the light. Maybe because it’s so bright. It looks kind of disconnected from time… not space though, I guess, otherwise photographing it might have been a lot more difficult.
Steve – sure it’s not the werewolf genes?
HOWL!!!
Rain and clouds blocked the view in Atlanta. :-(
Maybe tonight.
@mcC: I had a pretty good view of the moon as I was heading for the train station around 6am CST. It was maybe a bit higher than in the photo, so I’m guessing 6:30ish. (Although, John is further west in the eastern time zone than I am in the central, so it may have been even later than that…)
With all your blogstalkers… erm, commenters lurking about, how could you ever truly be alone?
Unless that was just the emo talking…
John H:
Actually closer to about 7:20am.
Cracking photo, and we’re both too old to get away with emo impersonations. :)
Gorgeous photo. In Los Angeles, we never have such a beautiful skyline to take such pictures against. And in the San Fernando Valley, we don’t even have nifty high-rises to use as part of the composition of our photos.
I’m envious.
And if I ever lose my eyes,
if my colours all run dry,
Yes if I ever lose my eyes,
oh if…
I won’t have to cry no more.
–Yusuf Islam (nee Cat Stevens)
Actually, Yusuf Islam was né Steven Demetre Georgiou. Cat Stevens was just a sation on the way.
Closer, huh? And full. No wonder my ICU had the night from hell.
Anyone who claims the moon doesn’t effect behavior has never worked in a hospital or long term care facility.
The moon rose through a haze of orange eastern sky as I was driving one of my several children to something-or-other. Eventually it climbed into a band of thin clouds and I didn’t have 1. my camera or 2. a tripod, so I was forced to merely enjoy the beauty while avoiding other cars.
Lovely!!
You’re never alone, John. Just 27,000 light years away, there’s something lurking in the galactic center with the mass of four million solar masses.
And it wants you.
They even have movies of the stars near it orbiting The Dark Thing Which Must Not Be Named.
Tear your heart out emotionally? Hell, this thing’ll rip you apart from tidal forces from vast distances.
Have a great day!
Dr. Phil
My vision of the moon was similar. I was in the car at 7am, driving to work and absolutely *amazed* at the beauty of the moon. Wish I’d thought to take a picture…
John, you are never alone. In fact, we are all interconnected. Come here big guy, you need a hug?
Awww, John. You’re not all alone. We’re all out here, looking in on you. You just can’t see us because it’s dark out.
(Whoops, fumbled my Save Vs. Creepy again…)
@17: Yeah, yeah. But my version was more to my point.
::channels Jackie (nee Herbert Walton) Gleason::
“One of these days, Waller … pow, to the moon!”
And if you like looking into the night sky you should keep an eye out for the Geminid meteor shower over the next night or two. Usually a good show.
Unfortunately the full moon won’t help your night vision.
WendyB_09, nah, I’m naturally this hairy.
The aversion to silver is just a coincidence.
Lovely photo. And, it doesn’t look like you’re very much alone — 26 comments would make me all warm and fuzzy. Want a moon-shooting hint? Expose for daylight. If you have a point-and-shoot, you may ignore me. But, then, who knows if I’ll ever get around to reading that Scalzi book on the pile . . .
Very nice!
Are you still using the Nikon D70s that you wrote about ‘way back when, or do you have new gear? I’d like to know what you’re using as my wife is interested in a nice digital SLR camera and maybe if she’s good Santa will bring one for her.
Still using the D70s. It works well and there’s no reason to replace it at this time.
Mmm. I caught a view like this around 4:30PM yesterday, when it’s about that dark in Vancouver. It made the darkness not seem so suffocating.
Would it be possible for you to provide links to larger versions of this and any other sunrise/sunset/skyline photos that you post? They make beautiful desktop backgrounds but get blurry when displayed on a largish monitor.
I caught the moon rise last night while we were admiring the neighborhood holiday lights, and the setting this morning when it shone right in my bedroom window and woke me up before dropping behind the trees. Darn eliptical thingo, changing the angle and confusing me! Not used to seeing it in that part of the sky.
I didn’t wake up until noon today, so I missed the moon completely. It’s also cloudly(ish) in Cleveland right now, so I probably wouldn’t have been able to see it anyways…
acpaul
The people who claim that the full moon doesn’t cause huge spikes in crime and craziness and whatnot probably do not work in ICUs. They are far too busy analyzing real data and ignoring anecdotal evidence.
And now I’m alone. So very alone.
“Christ, you don’t know the MEANING of ‘heartbreak’, buddy!” –Tom Waits
It was a very nice complement in clear (but relatively cool) skies over Old Monterey’s “Christmas in the Adobe’s” last night
You have cats. You’re never alone.
Ah, this does indeed sound like the moon would have been visibly brighter and larger:
http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2008/09dec_fullmoon.htm
‘Course, how good is my memory of the size and brightness of full moons?
There well may have been a moon up there above the clouds and snow but damned if I could see it. Hope the rest of the world enjoyed the show.
Steve @ 27 – thanks for clearing that up. As we frequently lurk on the same sites, thought I should know if I needed silver or garlic as an accessory.
Tonight’s moon in Atlanta is spectacular. Nice and clear and BIG.
And thanks to whoever mentioned the meteor shower, I’ll be a little bit away from some of the city lights tomorrow night and may get to see a bit of it.
Makes me sort of wish I was in Miami….
my pictures never turn out of the moon. Yours was fab.