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Credit & Copyright: Daniel Lopez
(El Cielo de Canarias)
Explanation:
What
phase of the Moon is 3.14 radians
from the Sun?
The Full Moon, of course.
Even though the
Moon might look full
for several days, the Moon is truly at its full phase when it is
Pi radians
(aka 180 degrees) from the Sun in
ecliptic longitude.
That's opposite the Sun in planet Earth's sky.
Rising as the Sun set on March 9, 2020, only an hour or so after the
moment of its full phase, this orange tinted and
slightly flattened
Moon still looked full.
It was photographed opposite the setting Sun from Teide National Park
on the Canary Island of Tenerife.
Also opposite the setting Sun, seen from near the Teide volcano peak
about 3,500 meters above sea level, is the mountain's rising
triangular shadow
extending into Earth's dense atmosphere.
Below the distant ridge line on the left are the
white telescope domes of
Teide
Observatory.
Today, March 14 2025, the moon is
Pi radians from the Sun at exactly 06:55 UTC.
That's about three minutes before the midpoint of the March Full Moon's
total
lunar eclipse.
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NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: Moon
Publications with words: Moon
See also: