It was clear today so I decided to go over to Bryant park to observe the nearly full Moon. Perigee is tomorrow at 1407 Local and the full Sturgeon/Green Corn/Red/Dog Days/Grain Moon occurs at 1410 local. This will be the largest full Moon of the calendar year.
The first thing I noticed was a black cat right above Tycho.
Moon Atlas 3D graphic
Moon Atlas 3D graphicI have been staring at the Moon for 15 years or so and this is the first time I have seen the Black Cat in the Moon. S/he must have just walked over from the back side. I searched Google and there is no mention of him on the first page of results. His two pointed ears go on either side of Davy (the left ear, as viewed from Earth, is not as visible in the photographs as it was in the eyepiece but projects upward between Davy B and Kundt). His eyes are Alpetragius B and Lassell H and Lassell C/G/K/M complex are his nose. His long thin neck passes west of Lassell E. His body is between Nicolet and the Straight Wall. His legs are a subtle darkening of his body beginning west of Birt and ending in two feet visible just east of Pitatus. Thebit P and Thebit form his tail.
annotated Virtual Moon Atlas graphic
LunarMap HD graphicHe doesn't show up on the map but when you look at the moon and the satellite images that were used in the Moon Atlas 3D chart he is plane as day.
I tried making some pictures of the Moon over the Empire State building with my tablet but it was not cooperating. This is the only one that was reasonably sharp.
This image was made with my PHD digital camera and massaged a bit in Adobe Lightroom.
