Tuesday, February 23, 2016

Snow Moon

Last night's full Moon is known as the "Snow Moon" (and it seems that February is the snowiest month in the US).


And while there wasn't any snow there was ice. In the form of thin clouds. And that ice acts like prisms creating  both a 22° halo and a partial circumscribed halo (the colored bit at the top).

And that bright dot below and to the left of the Moon (and tree) is Jupiter. And given that Jupiter's diameter is forty times that of the Moon, the relative sizes give an idea of just how big the solar system is.

Space is big.  Really big.

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