Vancouver BC residents: Is it just me, or is the moon 3 times bigger now than usual? (1 Viewer)

[Max Leung]

Hey, does the Earth's atmosphere make the moon look larger than it really is? When the mooon is closer to the horizon, it will look larger because the light bouncing off the moon must go through more atmosphere than at noon. The thicker atmosphere at that angle would act like a magnifying lens. (With my luck this theory has already been debunked )

 

[Cees Alons]

Max,

The moon looks larger, because you "think" its farther away.

If measured properly (with instruments - just take a pic!), it's exactly as large as when seen right above, so the deflection theory doesn't hold.

Look at the sky on a bright day: the sky above you looks closer than near the horizon (as if it's not a sphere). For closer objects, like clouds, that perception is true. But on a clear day, for something as far away as the moon, it is certainly false.

So our mental projection of the moon image on a daily perceived ceiling is what makes the moon (and the sun - but you cannot stare at the sun like you can at the moon) look so much larger near the horizon.

Cees

 

[Jay H]

Oohh, this reminds me of the time my sisters and I played this real cruel joke on one of our nephews in Toronto. It was night out and almost a full moon and my nephew is only like 3-4 years old and we're all just staring at the moon. I get this crazy idea to tell my nephew that the moon is so big because it ate the sun, and the sun is never going to come out anymore. We were really laying it on real good and the poor kid was asking questions to which we would make up something to further freak the poor boy out. I think after we left, he went and inquired about this incident to his mom and dad who knew nothing of the incident cause later on, I think they mentioned it in passing and cracked me up!!

Hey, if the moon is three times larger, then the moon cakes will be 3 times larger too..woopee!

Jay