My photo
This is my photographer’s blog, for your consideration. I post some of my favorite shots here, usually along with some comments about how the photo was taken or post-processed. (Occasionally I have the vain thought that someone might like to read about that.)

If you like what you see here, feel free to check out my Flickr site and YouTube channel.

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Tax Day Conjunction

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On April 15th -- Tax Day -- the planets Venus and Mercury were visited by a very young crescent Moon. Only 3% of the Moon's visible area was sunlit, providing the picturesque view above. Although technically in a shadow, the rest of the Moon was still nicely illuminated by earthshine.

Underneath the Moon is the relatively tiny dot representing the innermost planet Mercury -- normally so close to the Sun that we can't see it. Here is a zoomed-up view that shows both earthshine and Mercury more clearly:

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By the way, a "3% Moon" is very thin. Here is a close-up view of the Moon that evening, exposed for the crescent:

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The next day, the planets were too far apart to make an interesting group picture. However, the still-young crescent Moon (7% this time) wandered near the Pleiades -- a cluster of seven bright stars often mistaken for the Little Dipper. While I was taking the shot, another traveling light joined the picture -- an airliner on its way to PDX.

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It's great to see the sky again -- two days in a row! -- now that the Oregon rainy season is drawing to a close. :-)

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