Oregon = Ireland, almost

The September 27, 2015 eclipsed supermoon

 Almost a month ago now, I went out to take pictures of the moon. A lot of people were doing that because it was the rare occasion of a supermoon and an eclipse at the same time. This will not happen again until 2033.
 From where we live, the moon was to come up over the horizon partially eclipsed and not far from Mt. Hood. I tried to find a spot where I could see that and hoped that Mt. Hood would still be visible at dusk while the moon was rising to the left of it. I found a great spot on the ridge behind our house, a few miles further up.

Daylight view, with a hazy Mt. Hood, from my vantage point

 This is what it looked like before it got dark. Mt. Hood is in the distance but difficult to see clearly that day. This happens a lot here. No clear, 80-mile views of Mt. Taylor that we used to have in Albuquerque. It is more like Ireland. The humidity often limits how far and clearly we can see.
 The last time I took pictures of a supermoon, a full moon when it is closest to Earth, was in Ireland. You can read my report and see the pictures in the Spring 2012 blog entry. Back then it was just a supermoon, not an eclipse. But, just the same as this time, haze on the horizon prevented me seeing the moon until it was quite a bit up in the sky.

Haze and the dimness of the moon made it hard to see at first

 I was alone when I set up my camera and took the daylight picture above. By the time the moon became visible, there were about thirty people around me, waiting for the spectacle to begin. Everybody knew the time when the moon was supposed to rise, but nothing happened for almost an hour, until finally the moon started to appear out of the haze. Of course, by that time Mt. Hood was in the dark.
 Just like Ireland, it was also getting cold. Both Dublin and Portland rarely get snow, but the above freezing temperatures feel much colder because of the humidity. Waiting for the moon to climb higher, I turned around and got a nice shot of the big dipper. You may have to click on it to enlarge it to see it properly.

The big dipper setting in the West

 Taking a picture of the full moon is actually not easy, if we you also want something else in that picture. With a short exposure you get the the moon's face, but everything else is in the dark. Longer exposures show the landscape illuminated by the moon, but its face is just a bright light without features.
 With an eclipsed moon, things are a little bit easier. Now the problem is to have a long enough exposure. The moon (and the rest of the sky) moves quite quickly and the needed long exposures create blur.
 Clearly, I need to practice this some more. Good thing I'll have until 2033 before I have to be ready!

The beginning of the end

 As usual, the rest of the pictures are on Picasa.