Advice Needed for an Art Project (Moon Tracking)

"Funambulist" wrote in message
om...
Sam Wormley wrote in message
...

Suggest something like XEphem for moon angular position given
place, date and time.

Sam, thank you for pointing me to XEphem. I'm looking into it now --
though -- as it is X windows -- I wonder how easy it is to make the
azimuth angle and altitude to RealBasic and the USB interface that I'm
using?

You can work out the calculations from sources like
"Astronomical Algorithms" by Jean Meeus

"Explanatory Supplement To The Astronomical Almanac" Edited by
P. Kenneth Seidelmann, U.S. Naval Observatory, Washington D.C.

Thanks too for these pointers.

Since posting here I've stumbled across Keith Burnett's pages on
Astronomical Calculations

http://www.xylem.f2s.com/kepler/index.html

And wonder whether his 'Position of the Moon to 0.3 Degrees'
calculation and his 'Converting RA and DEC to ALT and AZ' might be all
I need?

http://www.xylem.f2s.com/kepler/moon.html
http://www.xylem.f2s.com/kepler/altaz.html

Has anyone any experience with these calculations? Anyone know how I
can contact Keith?

Thanks again,



No, but your tip of the index finger at arms length subtends an angle of a
degree or so (in my case about 1.5 degrees). In that case, an accuracy of
0.3 degrees would be more than adequate for your purposes.

DaveL