Moon Shots

Jeff and I went out one of the nights last week to try to catch a glimpse of Comet Pan-STARRS, a bright comet that could be seen in the Western sky right after sundown. We had heard that it could be seen with the naked eye but we still brought out binoculars and of course the camera. Jeff made sure I packed the tripod as well.

Although the clouds were low on the horizon, the rest of the sky was clear. So we took some sunset photos and a couple of beautiful moon photos. Jeff and I played to see how close we could get with just the natural zoom of the camera. I thought about digiscoping it but I'm still learning and most of my shots come out terrible. Plus once we got home, I realized just how close the zoom had gotten.

Alright Jeff, you're correct, the tripod makes all the difference.

And a view of the sunset that night. Now if only the colors were perfect. But I guess that just gives us something to work towards.

Moon

As an added note, Happy New Year all. Not only is it the end of a year but the end of a decade. Always something to be marked. And to add to that excitement, there is an odd moon tonight. Tonight is a Blue Moon (a second full moon within a month), something that only happens every couple of years. I would be curious to find out the last time that a Blue Moon fell on New Years Eve. I would bet many many moons ago. It is also a partial lunar eclipse tonight, although we in the U.S. won't be able to see it. So some unusual astronomical occurances for the New Year. If only I believed in omens...