Observational Project #1

Phases of the Moon

Due: October 12, 2018 at 5:00 PM

You are to make on the order of 10 observations of the moon over a 30 - 40 day period. Preferably you will make an observation of the moon every third day. The point of this project is to see the changes in the Moon. Therefore, providing some number of sketches of the same thing is not a successful completion of this project. Do not wait to get started! You will likely deal with Weather as it is.

Since the moon rises and sets at different times, you will have to make these observations at different times on different days. For each observation complete an observation log (The last page of this document provides a blank template with space for 2 observations on it. Print out as many as you need.)

Note: This project is concurrent with the Constellation Observation Project. You should be doing both the entire time you are doing the Moon Project.

In addition to a title page with your name on it, you are to turn in the following:

A.		General Moon Information write-up:
	1.		A picture of the day involving the moon. Give a printout of the picture include the text below the picture. Be sure the date of the APOD printed out. Note: You do not have to fill out an APOD form as you do in lab.
	2.		Find a myth that involves the moon prominently and give a brief (less than one page) synopsis of the myth. Do this for two completely different cultures, (e.g. Native American and Greek, Note: Roman and Greek, Chinese and Japanese, Native American and Mexican, Mexican and South American, etc. are essentially the same, do not use both. Other different cultures include, Norse, Egyptian, Chinese, Japanese, Asian India, African, etc. This is not meant to be an exhaustive list, if you are unsure if the two cultures are sufficiently different, ask the professor.)
	3.		Choose two different Apollo astronauts who actually walked on the moon (there were only 12), and write down: what mission they were on, when they went to the moon, how long were they there, and what did they accomplish there. Give a brief description of their life before and after they were astronauts.

This portion of your project should be between 3 and 5 pages. Include references for your information. Tell me where you got your myths etc. Include Book, pages, authors, etc. URL’s are acceptable if info is off Web. Provide specific labels identifying each of the three sections.

B.		Observation Log:
	1.		Fill in the information in the top of the form.
	2.		In the bottom part of the form, make a rough sketch of the background area where you are observing from. Include at least one permanent reference point (e.g. A tall tree, a power wire, antenna, corner of a building)
	3.		Specify the direction you are looking when you make the observation. (i.e. North, Northeast, etc.)
	4.		As accurately as possible draw the moon in its position of the sky at the time of the sketch. Try to make its size and shape (i.e. phase) as accurate as you can.
	5.		If the Sun is in the sky sketch its position relative to the moon.
	6.		If the Sun is not in the sky sketch the brightest stars that are near the moon's position. Identify any constellations you can.
	7.		If there is three or more consecutive days of bad weather such that you cannot observe the moon, then you may have an observation that is simply the dates of the bad weather. Note this does mean if the weather is bad on the day you plan to observe, you may cancel an observation. Simply do it the next day and make your following observation two days later instead of three.
	8.		New moon is not a legitimate observation as the moon cannot be seen; you must be able to sketch the moon in some phase. Use a waning Crescent, and then wait 3 or 4 days for a waxing crescent to be viewable.
	9.		You are not to enhance your sketches by any use of software, TV, internet or other sources of astronomical information. I am not grading on artistic talent. You sketches should represent what your Naked Eye saw.

Remember that the moon rises and sets about 50 minutes later each day. During the first week of phases (around New Moon) the moon rises and sets about the same time as the sun. It may difficult to see the moon then. Best bet, after new moon, just after sunset, the moon should be low to the western horizon, and before a new moon, just before sunrise near the eastern horizon.

Around First quarter moon, the moon rises about noon and sets about midnight. Around Full moon, the moon rises about sunset and sets about sunrise. Around Third quarter, the moon rises about midnight and sets about noon.

You do not have to view the moon the same time (or place) each observation, in fact that is impossible. Try to plan your views at reasonable times.

An example of a form is shown below:

Observation #

Number of days since last observation

Observation Time (include AM or PM

Date

Location:

Direction you are facing to observe moon ( i.e. N, S, E, W, NE, SE, SW, NW)

Phase of Moon

Which side of moon is illuminated (right or left):

Approximate number of degrees above the ground: (Recall that the Zenith is 90 degrees above the ground)

Sketch:

Observation #

Number of days since last observation

Observation Time (include AM or PM

Date

Location:

Direction you are facing to observe moon ( i.e. N, S, E, W, NE, SE, SW, NW)

Phase of Moon

Which side of moon is illuminated (right or left):

Approximate number of degrees above the ground: (Recall that the Zenith is 90 degrees above the ground)

Sketch:

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This page last updated on August 24, 2018