The Seas Of Tranquility And Serenity In The Haze

9:56 AM  , , , , ,  

Singapore
19 June 2013

On this night when the PSI still remains high and is escalating as we approach early morning, Merlion Wayfarer was surprised to note that the moon is bright and clear. Tonight is the 11th night of the lunar calendar, 4 days away from the monthly full moon.

PM10 PSI reading as of 0000h. The upward trend started around 2000h...

What we are seeing here is the "near side" of the moon, distinguishable by presence of dark spots called "lunar maria". The side of the Moon that faces Earth is called the near side, and the opposite side the far side.  

Lunar maria are formed by ancient volcanic eruptions, and are found almost exclusively on the near side of the Moon, covering 31% of the surface on the near side, compared with a few scattered patches on the far side covering only 2%.

Even from this distance, the Seas of Tranquility and Serenity are visible...

Merlion Wayfarer looks forward to good weather and clearer skies on the 15th.

  
More photos are available on Merlion Wayfarer Goes Green's Picasa at :Natural Phenomena - The Moon
   

Sources

  • "Lunar mare". Wikipedia. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunar_mare (19 June 2013).
  • "Moon" by SPUDIS, P.D. (2004).  World Book Online Reference Center, NASA. 
  • "Moon". Wikipedia. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moon (19 June 2013).
  • "The Composition and Geologic Setting of Lunar Far Side Maria" by GILLIS, J.J. & SPUDIS, P.D. (1996). Lunar and Planetary Science, 27: 413–404.