The Lemon Fool

A new remote image of the Earth, Moon system taken from a distance of 39.5 million miles by NASA OSIRIS mission:

https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/godd ... moon-image

The picture is, sadly, underwhelming
A few small blobs of white on a dark background.

However, I am always overwhelmed by the technological ability of humans to be able to take such a picture.

--kiloran

Better?

https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/ ... p?id=91494

Certainly shows the scale much more clearly.

XFool wrote:Better?

https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/ ... p?id=91494

Certainly shows the scale much more clearly.

My whelm factor has significantly increased

--kiloran

kiloran wrote:

XFool wrote:Better?

https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/ ... p?id=91494

Certainly shows the scale much more clearly.

My whelm factor has significantly increased

--kiloran

Interesting. If I'd been asked to place the Moon in a picture at that scale - in a sort of spot the ball competition - I'd have probably placed it at about a third of that distance out from the Earth. Not sure where I picked up that idea but I'm surprised that the Moon is orbiting quite so far out.

ursaminortaur wrote:Interesting. If I'd been asked to place the Moon in a picture at that scale - in a sort of spot the ball competition - I'd have probably placed it at about a third of that distance out from the Earth. Not sure where I picked up that idea but I'm surprised that the Moon is orbiting quite so far out.

It's around 30 earth diameters from the earth, so perhaps it should look even further away

--kiloran

ursaminortaur wrote:Interesting. If I'd been asked to place the Moon in a picture at that scale - in a sort of spot the ball competition - I'd have probably placed it at about a third of that distance out from the Earth. Not sure where I picked up that idea but I'm surprised that the Moon is orbiting quite so far out.

Indeed. A common misconception.

But that's nothing. Remember all those pretty 'diagrams' of atoms or the Solar system? They are nonsense! You can't draw a to scale picture of an atom (OK I know the Bohr atom isn't realistic!) or the Solar system on a piece of paper and show the sizes and distances at the same time, it's strictly one or the other.

Try this for size:

https://www.space.com/30610-scale-of-so ... video.html

Somewhere on the Internet there was a model that allowed you to 'browse' through the planetary orbits to give you a sense of the scales. Don't have a link at present.

XFool wrote:

ursaminortaur wrote:Interesting. If I'd been asked to place the Moon in a picture at that scale - in a sort of spot the ball competition - I'd have probably placed it at about a third of that distance out from the Earth. Not sure where I picked up that idea but I'm surprised that the Moon is orbiting quite so far out.

Indeed. A common misconception.

But that's nothing. Remember all those pretty 'diagrams' of atoms or the Solar system? They are nonsense! You can't draw a to scale picture of an atom (OK I know the Bohr atom isn't realistic!) or the Solar system on a piece of paper and show the sizes and distances at the same time, it's strictly one or the other.

Try this for size:

https://www.space.com/30610-scale-of-so ... video.html

Somewhere on the Internet there was a model that allowed you to 'browse' through the planetary orbits to give you a sense of the scales. Don't have a link at present.

Yes I'm well aware of the vast size of the atom in comparison to the nucleus in the Bohr model (something like 10000 times as large) and of the solar system in comparison to the size of the planets. But somehow I'd picked up an image of the moon being much closer than that picture shows.

kiloran wrote:

ursaminortaur wrote:Interesting. If I'd been asked to place the Moon in a picture at that scale - in a sort of spot the ball competition - I'd have probably placed it at about a third of that distance out from the Earth. Not sure where I picked up that idea but I'm surprised that the Moon is orbiting quite so far out.

It's around 30 earth diameters from the earth, so perhaps it should look even further away

--kiloran

Thanks I'll try to remember that in future and adjust my picture of how the moon orbits the earth.

kiloran wrote:

ursaminortaur wrote:Interesting. If I'd been asked to place the Moon in a picture at that scale - in a sort of spot the ball competition - I'd have probably placed it at about a third of that distance out from the Earth. Not sure where I picked up that idea but I'm surprised that the Moon is orbiting quite so far out.

It's around 30 earth diameters from the earth, so perhaps it should look even further away

The link showing the "top-down" view illustrates why it can look closer. Arbitrarily close even.

https://www.asteroidmission.org/?attach ... =3229#main