No. 2. September 24, 1903; Moon’s Age 3.87 Days.
“I should have told you that,” I replied. “Yes, it does represent the moon at a time when more of its surface, visible to us, is illuminated by the sun. In fact, we may regard it as a picture of the moon made about a day later than the other. But I must now tell you that these photographs were not all taken in regular succession, a day apart, or even two days apart. That was impracticable for reasons that I need not explain. Some of them were made at one season of the year and some at another. Yet taken together they form a sufficiently continuous series to enable us, with their aid, to follow the changing aspects of the moon during more than three weeks, or all that part of a lunation in which the moon is a conspicuous object in the sky.”[[2]]
[2]. In addition to what is said in the text concerning the photographs the reader should be informed that, in consequence of her “librations,” the moon does not, all the time, present exactly the same surface toward the earth. If she did we should never see more than one half of her surface. In fact, however, at one time or another, we see, in all (but never at the same time), about fifty-nine per cent of her surface, leaving forty-one per cent which is forever invisible because never turned in our direction. The librations, or “balancings,” of the moon, which bring now one and now another portion of the usually invisible hemisphere into view, are of three kinds: First, the libration in latitude, arising from the combined effects of the inclination of the moon’s orbit to the plane of the earth’s orbit, and the inclination of her axis of rotation to the plane of her own orbit. When added together these two inclinations make the axis of the moon lean one way or the other with respect to the earth about 6½°. But, since the inclination of the moon’s orbit to that of the earth is continually varying to a small extent, the amount of this libration is also variable. Its effect is to cause now the North and now the South Pole of the moon to incline slightly toward the observer on the earth, so that he can see alternately a little way round the northern and the southern edges of the moon’s disk.
Second, the libration in longitude, which arises from the eccentricity of the moon’s orbit, causing her to move a little faster when she is nearer the earth, or in perigee, and a little slower when she is farther from the earth, or in apogee. In consequence of this, she gets alternately about 6° ahead of, or behind, the position which she would have if her orbit were a perfect circle and her motion perfectly uniform. But, inasmuch as her rotation on her axis is never either faster or slower, she shows a little of her usually invisible hemisphere on the western side when she is between perigee and apogee, and a little on the eastern side when she is between apogee and perigee. The accompanying diagram is designed to aid the reader in understanding these effects.
Effect of Moon, Varying Velocity in Orbit Producing Libration in Longitude.
Third, the diurnal libration, which arises from the fact that the diameter of the earth bears a considerable proportion to the distance of the moon. If the observer were at the center of the earth there would be no effect of this kind, but being situated about 4,000 miles from the center, there is a parallactic effect in consequence of which we see a little around the western side of the moon when she is rising and a little around the eastern side when she is setting. The maximum diurnal libration is a little more than one degree. The maximum libration in latitude is 6° 44´, and that in longitude 7° 45´. An illustration of the results of libration will be found by comparing photographs Nos. 1 and 2. They were both taken at nearly the same “age of the moon,” about three days, twenty hours, but under different librations, so that in No. 2 more of the western edge of the moon is visible, and the crescent appears broader. Even more remarkable examples of the results of libration are seen in Nos. 6 and 7, and 8 and 9. In No. 6, the moon is actually “older” by about half a day than in No. 7, yet, owing to libration, the “terminator,” or line between day and night on the moon, is considerably farther toward the east in the latter than in the former. A similar effect is seen in comparing Nos. 8 and 9. The exact dates and ages of the moon corresponding to these photographs are given in the Appendix.
“If you will follow the curve of the terminator toward the south (upward in the photograph), you will perceive that there is a long line of ovals, more or less resembling Langrenus. The first of these, darker in appearance than Langrenus, is named Vendelinus.”
“What extraordinary names!” exclaimed my companion, “and how unpicturesque!”