Definitive moon size illusion experiment

John Steinberg wrote:

If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the precipitate.


Now settle down, John ;o)



--
Martin
"Photographs From the Universe of Amateur Astronomy"
http://home.earthlink.net/~martinhowell

(Mark Elkington) wrote in
om:

So there you have it. Closeness to the horizon was not the cause, but
rather relative distances to terrestrial reference objects.

I think this is rather simplistic myself. It doesn't explain why the
phenomenon occurs at sea, or in the Sahara Desert. It doesn't explain why
the Sun is also affected, or the constellations.

I watched Pegasus rise last night, and it's a constellation that is hugely
affected. When it's low in the NE, it appears to cover a huge amount of the
visible sky.

I was wondering if passengers riding in a jetliner at 35,000 feet see the
same effect when the moon rises. Does anybody know?

(Mark Elkington) wrote in
om:

So there you have it. Closeness to the horizon was not the cause, but
rather relative distances to terrestrial reference objects.

I think this is rather simplistic myself. It doesn't explain why the
phenomenon occurs at sea, or in the Sahara Desert. It doesn't explain why
the Sun is also affected, or the constellations.

I watched Pegasus rise last night, and it's a constellation that is hugely
affected. When it's low in the NE, it appears to cover a huge amount of the
visible sky.

I was wondering if passengers riding in a jetliner at 35,000 feet see the
same effect when the moon rises. Does anybody know?

On 6 Jul 2004 16:24:02 -0700, Mark Elkington wrote:

We left a party the other night and drove away up a hill. The moon was
full and low on the horizon, viewable through the branches of trees
and over the rooftops of houses at the top of the hill.

It looked huge, as big as the distant trees and houses.

As we drove toward the top of the hill, the moon shrank! By the time
we reached the top, the moon was only the size a soccer ball in the
branches of the now close trees.

So there you have it. Closeness to the horizon was not the cause, but
rather relative distances to terrestrial reference objects.

Sorry, but wrong. The illusion is alive and well when out on the ocean,
with no terrestrial objects anywhere in sight.


--
- Mike

Remove 'spambegone.net' and reverse to send e-mail.

On 6 Jul 2004 16:24:02 -0700, Mark Elkington wrote:

We left a party the other night and drove away up a hill. The moon was
full and low on the horizon, viewable through the branches of trees
and over the rooftops of houses at the top of the hill.

It looked huge, as big as the distant trees and houses.

As we drove toward the top of the hill, the moon shrank! By the time
we reached the top, the moon was only the size a soccer ball in the
branches of the now close trees.

So there you have it. Closeness to the horizon was not the cause, but
rather relative distances to terrestrial reference objects.

Sorry, but wrong. The illusion is alive and well when out on the ocean,
with no terrestrial objects anywhere in sight.


--
- Mike

Remove 'spambegone.net' and reverse to send e-mail.

On Wed, 07 Jul 2004 13:34:02 GMT, John Steinberg wrote:

For anywhere from about thirty minutes to an hour apr=8As observing, my=

vision feels considerably sharper. This for both near and far distance.=

And the improvement is quite pronounced. I probably should set up an
eye chart to determine whether or not there's a quantifiable
improvement, but in the interim I'll simply ask if anyone else reading
this thread has a similar experience.

I don't think I'd use the term sharper, but I do see more after observin=
g,
which I feel little doubt about attributing to dark adaption.

Trying to quantify your experience would definitely be worthwhile. I'll=

pay more attention next time I'm out as well, since I don't think you'd
easily confuse increased brightness with increased sharpness.


--
- Mike

Remove 'spambegone.net' and reverse to send e-mail.

On Wed, 07 Jul 2004 13:34:02 GMT, John Steinberg wrote:

For anywhere from about thirty minutes to an hour apr=8As observing, my=

vision feels considerably sharper. This for both near and far distance.=

And the improvement is quite pronounced. I probably should set up an
eye chart to determine whether or not there's a quantifiable
improvement, but in the interim I'll simply ask if anyone else reading
this thread has a similar experience.

I don't think I'd use the term sharper, but I do see more after observin=
g,
which I feel little doubt about attributing to dark adaption.

Trying to quantify your experience would definitely be worthwhile. I'll=

pay more attention next time I'm out as well, since I don't think you'd
easily confuse increased brightness with increased sharpness.


--
- Mike

Remove 'spambegone.net' and reverse to send e-mail.

Mike Ruskai wrote:

The illusion is alive and well when out on the ocean,
with no terrestrial objects anywhere in sight.

That would seem to imply that there is a connection with our
equilibrium, which tells the brain whether our head is level with the
horizon or tilted upward.


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Mike Ruskai wrote:

The illusion is alive and well when out on the ocean,
with no terrestrial objects anywhere in sight.

That would seem to imply that there is a connection with our
equilibrium, which tells the brain whether our head is level with the
horizon or tilted upward.


-----= Posted via Newsfeeds.Com, Uncensored Usenet News =-----
http://www.newsfeeds.com - The #1 Newsgroup Service in the World!
-----== Over 100,000 Newsgroups - 19 Different Servers! =-----

"Mark Elkington" wrote in message
om...
We left a party the other night and drove away up a hill. The moon was
full and low on the horizon, viewable through the branches of trees
and over the rooftops of houses at the top of the hill.

It looked huge, as big as the distant trees and houses.

As we drove toward the top of the hill, the moon shrank! By the time
we reached the top, the moon was only the size a soccer ball in the
branches of the now close trees.

So there you have it. Closeness to the horizon was not the cause, but
rather relative distances to terrestrial reference objects.

However the moon illusion also works at sea with NO terrestrial references
whatsoever.