Thank you to those who sent in their observations of December's total lunar eclipse, namely:- Marcus Buffrey (notes and shadow transit timings), Renee and Karel Cromarty (notes and drawings), David Frydman (notes), Shelagh Godwin (notes), James Lunny (notes, drawings and timings), Lee Macdonald (notes, timings and photographs), Alastair McBeath (notes and drawings), Bob Paterson (notes, drawings and timings), Ian Phelps (notes and timings), Graham Pointer (notes and timings), and David Scanlan (notes) who also made an eclipse video. A detailed account of the eclipse appears in "Luna", the section journal. Subscription to "Luna", which contains moon-related articles and information, costs only £2.00 for four issues, cheque or P.O. made payable to Peter Grego, plus 4 large stamped addressed envelopes. Please write for details.
After an absence of eight years, a welcome return to the Lunar Section has been made by Ian Birrell (Leckhampton). Ian has been perfecting lunar photography, and has taken some fine shots of various lunar areas, including the Theophilus chain, Aristoteles and Eudoxus, Piccolomini and Rupes Altai and Mare Serenitatis. Ian has also continued to make lunar observations. A detailed study of the Montes Spitzbergensis was made with his 100mm OG on December 4; ten distinct peaks were discerned, casting their shadows onto the surrounding Imbrian plain. The large walled plain Plato was observed on December 5. Ian's drawing shows the subtle tones of Plato's dark floor and the surrounding lunar Alps.
Marcus Buffrey (Monmouth) has been busy during December and January making studies of some of the larger lunar craters with his 60mm OG. Albategnius, Langrenus, Hipparchus and the Theophilus chain are well depicted. A 60mm OG can show a remarkable amount of lunar detail; craters as small as 5km may be discerned, and just about every class of lunar feature may be studied. Bob Paterson (Newbury) observed Theophilus, Posidonius, Gutenberg, Langrenus, Petavius, Gassendi, Agatharchides and Sinus Iridum during December, and Copernicus, Mare Crisium, Plato and Sinus Iridum during January. Extensive written notes accompany his sketches. Gutenberg is an interesting feature. Lying on the southwest border of Mare Foecunditatis, the 74km crater is shaped rather like a huge crab's pincer and is quite a striking object when situated near the morning terminator when the moon is around 5 days old. A deep cleft cuts across Gutenberg's floor from northwest to southeast, and more similarly oriented clefts cut across the marial plains northeast of the crater.
David Scanlan (Portsmouth) sent in an observation of the near-northern limb craters Challis and Goldschmidt made on December 4 with his 75mm OG.Finally, a note on the Section projects. These, as I have previously said, are available only to established members who have contributed to the Section in some way, and who are genuinely interested in participating in organised work. The advanced projects, such as the Topographic Studies and Intensity Estimations aren't really suitable for the raw lunar novice. And, to those already in receipt of project packs - I expect results soon!
