Lunar terminator time-lapse video

[Evetso (Steve)]

Hi all, I was just checking out Jeff's planetary images (nice one Jeff), and realised that I should post the recent result of a long-term project, for anyone interested to share. This is a 2 1/2 minute video time-lapse of a 7hr period, showing the movement of the sunrise along part of the lunar terminator. This is an idea I've been working on for several years. It has proven to be much more difficult than I anticipated, and I have a long way to go to get what I'm after. However, with conditions as they have been over the past couple of years, this is my best attempt to date. If you wait until the end of the video, I have given a brief technical description



https://youtu.be/uCFadVLKrj4


Regards Steve O

[Saturnine (Jeff)]

Interesting concept Steve, what may be of added interest is a similar time lapse but at a higher magnification, concentrating on a particular crater or other feature to add to the video . Would help to show a greater rate of change in the movement of the encroaching dawn.

[Averton (P and C)]

Really great idea, well executed Steve!
To get 7 hours cloud free certainly reduces your opportunities.

[Evetso (Steve)]

Yeah thanks Jeff, A tighter field of view is a tempting idea but it would require excellent seeing, and the tracking of such a small area for 7hrs or more, will be a serious challenge.


As far as I know, the so-called Lunar rate in a CGEM only uses an average Lunar RA rate, and does not track the moon in DEC. In my 7hr session I had to re-align the target area very often. Even then, I had to rotate and align the individual video clips in post editing.


Apparently if you can run EQMOD (which is not developed for Celestron Mounts) it is possible to download the Lunar emphemeris from NASA and have the mount track accurately in both RA and DEC.
Steve

[Evetso (Steve)]

Thanks Clare and Peter, yes getting a 7hr cloud free window is one of the challenges for this project, but there are other complications too. There are only about 3 Lunar cycles each year, in which you can get enough hours in darkness. In addition, there are only about 2-3 nights in each of those cycles when the moon phase is suited to showing the light/shadow movement. I'm hoping to try again next winter.
Steve

[Saturnine (Jeff)]

[QUOTE=Evetso;1573235]Yeah thanks Jeff, A tighter field of view is a tempting idea but it would require excellent seeing, and the tracking of such a small area for 7hrs or more, will be a serious challenge.


Steve , all you have to do is sit outside for 7 hours with the hand controller gently nudging the mount when required, easy !

[multiweb (Marc)]

That's a pretty cool capture Steve. You should drop some frames and make an animated loop.

[croweater (Richard)]

Great effort Steve. Enjoyed the snippets of info along the way. Had no idea the craters so deep(eg Tycho), and central mounts so high. Just wondering how they age the crater at 108m yrs.
Cheers, Richard

[Averton (P and C)]

Originally Posted by Evetso

Thanks Clare and Peter, yes getting a 7hr cloud free window is one of the challenges for this project, but there are other complications too. There are only about 3 Lunar cycles each year, in which you can get enough hours in darkness. In addition, there are only about 2-3 nights in each of those cycles when the moon phase is suited to showing the light/shadow movement. I'm hoping to try again next winter.
Steve

It makes it a rare event indeed. Well done. We can only hope that next winter is a lot kinder to astronomers than this one.

[N1 (Mirko)]

Enjoyed watching that, well done!

[Evetso (Steve)]

Thanks Richard, re the age of craters, my understanding is that the age is 'inferred' from observations of the amount of cratering in and around a lunar feature. The Mare (seas) are thought to have formed about 500m years ago, as lava flowed into very large but older craters. The rate and size of meteor impacts has declined over time. So by looking at the number and size of craters both inside and around a crater, the age can be estimated.
Steve

[Evetso (Steve)]

Thanks Mirko, glad you enjoyed it. Steve