Moon Between the Stones
Summer Solstice 2004
Credit & Copyright: Philip
Perkins
Moon Between the Stones
Explanation: Despite clouds and rain showers astronomer
Phillip Perkins managed to spot a reddened, eclipsed Moon between the stones
of this well known monument to the Sun during May's total lunar eclipse,
from Stonehenge, England. When he recorded this dramatic picture, the rising
Moon was only about 5 degrees above the horizon, but conveniently located
through a gap in the circle of ancient stones. Although at first glance
there appears to be an eerie, luminous pool of water in the foreground,
Perkins notes that his daughter produced the artistic lighting effect.
She illuminated a fallen stone and surrounding grass with a flashgun from
her hiding place behind the large sarsen stone to the right of center.
As the picture looks toward the southeast, the stone just below the Moon
is one of the inner bluestones rather than the famous Heel Stone, which
marks the northeast direction of the summer solstice sunrise.
SOURCE: NASA
APOD 2004 May 25 |