Arthur Fleet of Rainham in Essex wrote to me with a novel query; he asked if I knew of a publication which gave the correct way to pronounce the names of the lunar features. As you know, the Moon is full of odd-looking names, and no doubt even the most competent linguist would find it tough to enunciate many of them! Take the crater Bailly; I pronounce it "Bailey", as in "The Old....", but, being a French name it is correctly pronounced "Bah-yee". My advice is, as long as you pronounce the Anglo-Saxon names correctly (if English is your mother tongue), you may proceed in whatever way at all with the rest as long as it makes sense to you. Taking a non-lunar example, how many variations of "Betelgeuse" have you heard (or, indeed, read)? It is a "variable" star in more than one sense!
Bob Paterson, a new section member from Newbury in Berkshire, has sent in many fine lunar observations. Included in his studies have been:- Cassini, Gassendi, the Ptolemaeus chain, Deslandres, Petavius, Vendelinus, Langrenus, Copernicus, Schickard and Bailly. Accompanying his drawings are plenty of notes pointing out interesting or unusual features. Bob's drawing of Bailly is featured in this report. Using a 156mm reflector, Bob observed this large disintegrated plain on the evening of November 8 and he noted that its floor was of a very rugged nature, and the northern rim appeared to be serrated.
David Scanlan (Cosham, Portsmouth) observed the areas around Aristoteles, Cleomedes, Faraday, Grimaldi and Gruemberger. The observations were made throughout the last half of 1992 with a 75mm refractor. James Clarke (Warrington) sent in three detailed telescopic lunar observations showing the progress of the terminator and the bright ray systems. Paul Byrne (Hounslow, Middlesex) has sent in studies of Mare Imbrium and the eastern side of Mare Foecunditatis, made with a 90mm reflector. The observations clearly depict the sinuous "wrinkle ridges", features just tens of metres in height which may only be discerned when they are close to the terminator. Also shown is the unusually-shaped crater Gutenberg. Cliff Meredith submitted some 10x50 binocular studies of the whole moon at various phases, showing the earthshine and the main features. Marcus Buffrey (Monmouth, Gwent) sent in fine drawings of Plato and Eratosthenes, his very first lunar observations, made with a small refractor.
It appears that the Midlands and the east of England were totally clouded-out during the recent total lunar eclipse. Realising this, and with only a couple of hours remaining until first umbral contact, Paul Stephens and I drove westwards in the hope of encountering clearer skies. The penumbral phase, observed through the car's window on the M54, was clearly visible. We set up at Shrewsbury and observed a small part of the immersion phase until thick fog engulfed our site. From our short observation, at around 22h 15m, it was clear that the eclipse was going to be a very dark event.Meteor Section director Alastair McBeath was more fortunate. Observing from Morpeth in Northumberland with the naked eye and 7 x 50 binoculars, he followed the progress of the entire event. In addition to written notes pointing out various aspects of the eclipse, Alastair made a series of twenty coloured disc drawings from 20h 50m to 02h 05m UT. Notable was the darkness and slight redness of the penumbra at around 20h 40m, a blue-black border to the umbra and the darkness of totality. Alastair reports that at totality the moon was best seen using averted vision, although it could just be discerned directly.The next total eclipse takes place on the early morning of 1993 November 29, mid-eclipse being at 06h 24m UT. My apologies to those who have sent in their eclipse observations and not had a mention. A list of observers will be given in the next Circular, and observations shall be published in the section journal "Luna".
