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Old March 27th 11, 10:02 PM posted to sci.astro.amateur,sci.physics
Dr J R Stockton[_106_]
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Default For Kids and Grownups -- Exploration3: the Incredible Shrinking Moon

In sci.astro.amateur message e2cbf96f-ba16-48e1-b8cc-7685b12fd212@x18g2
000yqe.googlegroups.com, Sat, 26 Mar 2011 05:35:19, Mike Collins
posted:

How about the statement that you can see up to 70 percent of the
Moon's surface from Earth. A statement you can easily verify for
yourself using the technology of Galileo (a small telescope).


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moon : "Libration also changes the angle
from which the Moon is seen, allowing about 59% of its surface to be
seen from the Earth".

I don't know whether that figure, dominantly at least due to apparent
"side to side" motion caused by eccentricity, includes the apparent
"nodding" motion due to tilts, or the extra half a degree all round due
to parallax and the size of the Earth.

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