The Ashen Moon, the return! A monthly but spectacular phenomenon will be observable the week of May 22. We explain everything to you here. To your telescopes!
There are almost all sizes and all colors: white, gray, sand, red… Yet there is no darker than her. There Moon appears in the sky thanks to the reflection of the sun’s rays. Just take a look at a few pictures to see that the lunar ground is nothing but black. “The Moon is essentially grey. No color”, reported astronaut Jim Lowell in the command module of the Apollo 8 mission, in 1968. “But with artificial eyes, change of scenery: the lunar ground becomes multicolored”would explain years later our colleagues from Science and Future. A digital processing program allows researchers to bring some colors to our satellite to facilitate their work. This week, the Moon should nevertheless be draped in a gray veil.
It is a monthly phenomenonof course, but it is none the less “Magnificent“, according to Gilles Dawidowicz, vice-president of the Astronomical Society of France (Saf), interviewed by Actu.fr. Astronomy enthusiasts will have the opportunity to observe a “Moon ashy” throughout the week of May 22. Explanations: “We see a crescent moon lit by direct sunlight and we guess all the rest of the lunar disc. Normally, this part, not illuminated by our star, should remain in the dark, but it is backlit by the solar rays emitted by the Earth. By acting as a mirror, our good old planet reflects the Sun and allows us to see a portion of the Moon illuminated directly, another indirectly, giving this ashy tint. This spectacular phenomenon is usually observed just after the new moonwhen our satellite is ascending.
What conditions must be met to observe a Ash Moon?
The alignment of the stars is insufficient to show a Ash Moon. Our satellite must above all be low at dusk. “Weather conditions are also preponderant: it is necessary that the terrestrial face which reflects the solar light is strewn with clouds, it is them which play the part of the mirror. This is the case this Monday with a depression over the North Atlantic and southern Europe., adds Gilles Dawidowicz. Finally, a clear sky turns out to be essential to allow observation of the Moon. If necessary, take a camera, direct your gaze to the west and you’re done. “It’s within everyone’s reach, even with a wide angle”, concludes the specialist in the study of planetary surfaces. There is no point in landing the Moon, it is within sight!