Crescent Moon, Earthshine and Mercury Over New York City

May 24, 2017

NYC_MoonandMerc_3P5A0414 (7)

Photographer: Sandor Botor
Summary Authors: Sandor Botor; Jim Foster

Featured above is the crescent Moon and Mercury (at lower right) over the skyline of New York City.  This photo was taken from the Flushing area of Queens (a borough of New York City) on March 29, 2017, just before 9:30 p.m. Note the Moon's conspicuous Cheshire grin -- the bright sliver illuminated directly by the Sun. The Moon's dimly lit larger area is a result of earthshine, which is sunlight that reflects off the Earth and onto the Moon. Because the portion of the Moon lit by the Sun is so bright, earthshine can only be detected when the Moon is in the crescent phase. On this view the Empire State Building (at 1,250 ft or m 381 m) is at left and is at right is Citi Field (home of the New York Mets).

Photo Details: Camera Model: Canon EOS 5D Mark III; Lens: EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM; Focal Length: 105mm; Aperture: ƒ/4.0; Exposure Time: 0.600 s; ISO equiv: 640; Software: Adobe Photoshop CS6 (Windows).