Yesterday, the Moon, Regulus (Leo Alpha) and Saturn were close enough to be seen in binoculars. Seeing was poor. I spotted the dome at the margin of the lunar terminator near crater Copernicus. The elevation of this dome is remarkably low (<100 m ?); it is distinguishable only at very low Sun angle.
If weather is fine, tonight is a good chance to see a land of lunar domes. They are volcanoes but extinct 3 billion years ago. Point the telescope (150X - 300X or above) to the region between crater Copernicus & Kepler, one can see a land of domes like below. The image simulates the eyepiece view of a Newtonian reflector: south is up; east is left; west is right. There are at least 14 domes in this region indicated by the letter “d”. Some domes have summit pits.
發表於 2008-4-16 10:02:43
