Anticrepuscular Rays and Eclipsed Moon

August 17, 2011

Anti-crep raysPhilippines

Photographer
: Raven Yu;
Summary Author: Raven Yu; Jim Foster

The photo above shows pink-colored anticrepuscular rays above a sliver of the Moon and the Manila skyline as observed from the Seven Suites Hotel Observatory in Antipolo, Philippines. I was watching the Moon emerge from the Earth's shadow, during the total lunar eclipse of June 16, 2011, and noticed these beautiful rays appear just above it. Anticrepuscular rays may be seen opposite of the Sun during sunrise or sunset -- looking toward the antisolar point. They typically occur when towering clouds, on the same horizon as the Sun, are positioned in front of the solar disk. Where sunlight filters through gaps in these clouds, rays of light may extend all the way across the sky. However, they're most obvious on the horizon -- the Sun horizon (crepuscular rays) and the horizon opposite of the Sun. In this photo, the rays seem to radiate from a point above the Moon. Photo taken on June 16, 2011.

Photo Details: Camera: NIKON D3000; Focal Length: 46.0mm (35mm equivalent: 69mm); Aperture: f/8.0; Exposure Time: 0.100 s (1/10); ISO equiv: 280.

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