The Waxing Moon

A composite image of the waxing moon compiled from a number of video clips taken with my Canon 600 DSLR and my 127mm refracting telescope.

The moon is by far our nearest neighbour. Through binoculars or a small telescope even the casual observer can see lots of geological detail: mountain ranges, craters, valleys, basalt plains, faults and volcanic domes. Amateur astronomers and astro imagers tend to overlook the moon, (sorry for the pun), in search of more exotic and distant celestial wonders.  Every month we can watch the moon as it first waxes and then wanes. What better way to spend an evening than watching sunrise over the mountains of the moon?

The 'terminator' is the term used to delineate the moving line of sunrise on the moon's surface.  In the above image the terminator is sitting over the basalt 'seas' Mare Imbrium and Mare Vaporum.  The sun has already risen over Mare Crisium, Mare Tranquillitatis, Mare Fecunditatis, Mare Nectaris and Mare Serenitatis.

The Waxing Moon just five days old from new - a quick and noisy image taken with my 127mm refractor and Canon 600 D DSLR