We're Moving!

 Standing on top of the hill in the neighborhood cemetery, the morning was quiet. In the valley below, a few cars were on the road but there were no sounds. The sky above was full of stars.

    Behind me, Orion was sinking into the trees with the bright orange planet Mars sitting above. To “his” right was Aldebaran and to the left Sirius.  The constellations Gemini and Auriga were above. High overhead was Leo. It was like a winter night.

    In front of me, in the ESE, was where I was concentrating. I was waiting for the thin crescent moon to rise over the horizon. Approximately 3% illuminated, this will be my last chance to see the moon before the new moon, tomorrow.

    The Big Dipper’s handle led me down to Arcturus, a bit lower and off to the right was Spica. The moon would be rising below the pair. The time I had for Moonrise was 5:37. I started searching the horizon a few minutes earlier even though I knew it would appear about 5-7 minutes after the stated time.

    The camera was sitting on its tripod, the lens focused and pointing towards where I thought the moon would show up. An approximate time was set for the exposure, all I needed now was the moon!

    Below me, I saw the silhouette of a person walking on one of the roads through the cemetery, his flashlight flickering as he walked behind the monuments. I wondered if he would pass me but he took a different road. Beside him and a single deer I saw as I arrived, I was the only living thing here…

    Scanning my binoculars back and forth, I spotted the illuminated tip of the crescent at 5:44, seven minutes after the predicted time. I went over to the camera and started shooting. The moon appeared right where I had aimed the camera!

    I always find it fascinating to watch as any celestial object comes over the horizon. To see the motion of these objects is exciting to see. Being so close to the horizon, the motion is that much more noticeable! I was watching the earth spin and to a lesser amount, the moon orbiting the earth! Evidence of the coming sunrise was visible on the moon. How cool is that?

    Coming home, Orion was well below the trees, the planet Mars was tangled in their branches. Only a few stars were still visible but off in the east, the thin orange crescent was still visible. A half hour later, it had disappeared in the brightening sky, gone except for in my memory!