Anyone tried recording meteor strikes on the moon?

[Stonius]

Just wondering if this is something amateurs can do?

Are they bright enough to be seen from here? How to differentiate actual impacts from noise? Has anyone tried this or is it simply not worth it?

Oh, and here's a moon image from 2 nights ago - it was about the only thing salvageable from that night. I think next time I try planetary photography I will try and get out of the city to avoid thermal interference.

Mare Crisium on the right with the crater aptly named 'Picard' (I'm pretty sure no man has gone there before, boldly or otherwise). Picard is 23km across. The smaller craters visible are about 10km across. I think there is detail down to a scale of around 1-2km. On the left is a largish crater called Cleomedes. I'm assuming that's a lava tube running around the rim, but someone may correct me.

cheers

Markus

[glend]

NASA is watching.

https://www.express.co.uk/news/science/825642/Moon-meteor-biggest-explosion-NASA-video-impact

You would have to be pretty lucky to capture something, and dedicate a large amount of time.

[Saturnine]

Fine image of Crisium, what scope was used. Curious as imaged the same region and others on the same night, going by the terminator location. My seeing wasn't much good but managed a reasonable stack.
As for meteor strikes on the moon, flashes have been reported by astronomers over the years and I recall seeing an image of a flash in a book or magazine years ago but can't remember any details of where and when. Would be a matter of blind luck to capture anything.
The time and resources required for an automated camera imaging the moon every night it is up and it is clear skies in the resolution required would be a very limiting factor.

[Stonius]

NASA does everything better. Still, I'm curious if this sort of thing is even in range of amateur scopes.



Thanks, it was an RC10, powermate 2x with an ASI290. 60 seconds stacked (AS + PS). Seeing wasn't much chop for me either. I think most of the detail that was only occasionally glimpsed has come out in the photo. Field was slightly too narrow to get the compsition I wanted, but hey.

Re meteors; I guess I'm just thinking that meteors occurr on earth regularly. Every meteor that hits the moon must make a crater. The question then is what percentage of these hits are big enough to be observable from earth-bound telescopes, how often they occur and whether it's possible to distinguish smaller impacts from noise (the smaller the detectable impact, the more likelihood of recording an impact at all as there are more smaller meteors than big ones).

And yes, it would just be for interest rather than contributing to science since Nasa have their grubby little blue-latex-gloved hands all over this, as noted by GlenD. But then, they take better pictures of stars and planets too, but it's not going to stop me from trying. :-)

Cheers

Markus

[xelasnave]

I thought I had added here but I havent but what I thought I had said was that you have a very nice image so well done.
Alex

[Tinderboxsky]

Hi Markus,

Which feature are you referring to as a possible lava tube? Are you are referring to the broad feature on the floor of Mare Crisium that follows it’s rim in a circular pattern? I think this is a slump line as a result of the surface lava within the Mare subsiding more than the areas immediately adjacent to the rim of the Mare.

You have captured the detail of this slump line really well. I have managed to see it once or twice visually. One’s timing needs to be just right to catch the fine shadows that reveal the slump line.

[Stonius]

Its the thing running around the rim of Cleomedes, the largest crater on bottom left. I could be wrong of course, and its strange to see one on a crater rim, but I dont know what else it could be?

Im not thinking of the slumping in the Mare Crisium itself, but yes I always liked those getle ripples on the 'seas' too ��

Markus

[Stonius]

Thanks Alex, that means a lot. 😁

[Wavytone]

Hi Markus,

Yes its possible - there are several that have been recorded in recent years on video and they were so bright there's no question they'd be recorded in amateur gear. Some are on Youtube.

The downside is they're rare.

Many decades ago they were called "Transient lunar phenomena" as it took quite a while before it was generally recognised impacts could cause a flash lasting long enough to be seen by earthbound observers. Flashes lasting seconds had been seen though most thought they were imagining it.

There was one seen during a lunar eclipse that was seen by hundreds of observers which pretty much settled any question as to their reality.

Another aspect is that the best chance is when the visible side of the moon is facing into a known meteor stream and not screened from the impactors by the earth, which is much larger than the moon. Takes a bit of calculation to figure that out.

[Stonius]

Ah, thanks Nick. Good points :-)

[Wavytone]

http://www.slate.com/blogs/bad_astronomy/2014/02/24/lunar_impact_video_of_an_asteroid_h itting_the_moon.html