Our Moon Compared to FITS Images

Those who use their own small telescopes should look at the Moon images taken for comparison purposes and compare it with their equipment. However, I think amateurs will need a high quality, sensitive CCD, not just a web cam. Web cams are usually not sensitive to low light conditions, especially those that cost less than a $150.

Based on the calculations below, a full image size/width would occupy 75.92% of the moon size/width(not the moon’s area), or 1.32 frames would fit on the moon. I am surprised! Math for Full image width and the Moon:

Moon Radius = 1.738e6 Meters
Earth to Moon Distance = 3.844e8 Meters
Moon Width in Degrees = 2 * atan(1.738e6 / 3.844e8) = 0.518102 Degrees

Now the full width or height of one of the images that Steve is using is 0.3933333 degrees. Dividing that by the width of the moon in degrees yields 0.759181, or 75.92%. This is off course without making any corrections for atmospheric refraction.

Naji

Moon Shot as Comparison on Images

Here is a moon picture with the same telescope setup as our images for comparison, and a moon to frame diagram based on my calculations.