When two moons are visible in the sky. The phenomenon of "two moons"

“Last year, a sensational message appeared on English-language sites and migrated to Russian-language sites: on August 6, 2011, residents of the Australian city of Busby saw... two Moons in the sky! Astronomers helplessly shrugged: they were not ready to say anything about the second satellite of the Earth, about which no one knew anything until now... Photographs and even videos of the unique phenomenon were attached. Some enthusiasts said that the ancients knew about the second moon - and the two letters “O” in the English word moon (moon) designate exactly two moons (the fantastic knowledge of the ancients is generally one of the most discussed topics in our time)...

Alas, the sensation turned out to be an ordinary “duck”, and not very well done: attentive readers noticed that the surface of the “second moon” was the same as that of the first (only the image was rotated and painted in a different color) - it can’t, in in fact, there should be two absolutely identical celestial bodies! And the date was chosen poorly: at that time there could not have been a full moon in Australia - not even one... The administrator of one site even stated that he would not delete this note - he would leave it as “an example of nonsense.”

Yes, the Earth is unlucky with satellites - even Mars has two of them... so the desire of earthlings to see two moons in the sky is understandable. However, it is possible that this was once possible! But there was no one to look at the sky then.

4 billion years ago, a planet roughly the size of Mars collided with the Earth (it was called Theia), and the Moon was formed from the debris. Scientists have long noticed that its “light” side (facing the Earth) and “dark” are different: one is flatter, the other is more mountainous, with a thicker crust... American researchers E. Asphog and M. Jutzi suggested that after a collision with Theia formed not one, but two satellites of the Earth! The second was smaller than the Moon - 1200 km in radius - and over time it fell on the Moon, after which the debris was evenly distributed over the surface of the dark side.

But another American scientist, W. Cassidy, believes that we had a second moon in quite historical times - 6-7 thousand years ago, so that humanity retained the memory, if not of the satellite itself, then of its death: the Sumerian goddess Inanna, crossing the sky in a dazzling radiance, the ancient Greek myth of Phaeton, and the English folklore researcher J. Frazer found a similar motif in the legends of 130 Indian tribes!

W. Cassidy could not help but remember these legends while working on meteorites found in the north of Argentina in the Campo del Cielo area. Back in the 16th century. the Spanish conquistadors discovered there a huge metal block, which - as the Indians claimed - fell from the sky in time immemorial... At the beginning of the 19th century, an iron meteorite weighing about a ton was discovered there, the largest fragment of which is now in the British Museum. In subsequent years, many meteorites were found in Campo del Cielo - from small ones to a “record holder” of 33.4 tons... the “heavenly iron” was also discovered by the expedition of W. Cassidy. The composition of the meteorites found in these places indicated that they were fragments of one object. This happens: a large meteorite explodes in the atmosphere - but usually the debris scatters over an area not exceeding 1600 m, but here we were talking about 17 km! Moreover, chemical analysis showed the “relationship” of the Argentine finds with a meteorite found in 1937... in Australia! And the crater in which it was found is not the only one in the area.

W. Cassidy managed to establish the “age” of the disaster - 5800 years. What could have caused it? According to the scientist, it was the second satellite of the Earth, which revolved around our planet for 1000 years, gradually approaching it, until it collapsed under the influence of the Earth's gravity - and then the debris fell to Earth in the form of meteorites... that's how we lost the second Moon.

However, from time to time phenomena occur that look like “two moons.” So, on August 27, 2011 at 0.30, Mars passed at a very close distance from the Earth - and it could be seen with the naked eye. Of course, it was not the size of the Moon - but still larger than the stars (so we could get an idea of ​​what we could observe if we had a second satellite). The next time such a miracle is expected is in 280 years.

There are also so-called false moons - a special case of a halo, a luminous circle that appears around the sun or moon due to the refraction of light in specially arranged ice crystals in the clouds. The circle may not be completely visible, some of its parts may be brighter - then bright spots appear to the left and right of the star - these are false suns or moons (it turns out not two, but even three moons). True, it is not easy to see false moons: they are extremely rare, they glow weakly and dimly... False suns look much more “expressive”, sometimes there are even four of them - but this phenomenon is infrequent, and they remember it for a long time... especially if it preceded some events , with which it can be associated. Thus, the infamous campaign of Prince Igor against the Polovtsians was accompanied not only by a solar eclipse, but also by such a “heavenly sign.”

In a word, sad as it may be, we will not be able to see two moons in the night sky. But no one bothers you to imagine distant planets, where you can see two, three, or as many moons as you like... and maybe someday we’ll get to them after all?”

This year too, Russians want to see “two moons” in the sky - a phenomenon that could be observed back in 2003. But, as Maxim Khovrichev, a candidate of physical and mathematical sciences and a senior researcher at the Laboratory of Astrometry and Stellar Astronomy at the Pulkovo Observatory, told Metro, “two Moons” will not appear in the sky either on May 27, 2016, or on August 27.

“These rumors most likely arose due to the fact that the following facts were mixed,” the interlocutor explains to Metro. “Traditionally, every year on August 27, we are promised Mars the size of the Moon. This happens for the following reason. People often assume that all phenomena are repeated annually. That is, the same arrangement of celestial bodies should be repeated every year. This is not so. But the myth about “two moons” in the sky has existed for many years. Back in 2003, there was a great opposition of Mars. This phenomenon occurred on August 27. Some of journalists, when translating a foreign text, did not take into account that they write distances differently from ours. In a foreign article, commas separate the digits, but in ours the whole part is from the fractional part. Instead of 58 million kilometers, it became 58 thousand kilometers to Mars. And “literate "The journalist, recalculating, was surprised that the planet would seem three times larger than the Moon. And so everyone was invited to watch the “two Moons” on August 27. And so every year - first everyone writes, and then this rumor is persistently debunked, but it is persistently repeated. It’s like a meme on the Internet that lives on and on for decades.”

And “August 27” became “May 27,” most likely because on May 22 there was an opposition of Mars, not a great one, but before it. The Great Opposition of Mars will be in 2018, when this object will be at its brightest in the night sky. But on May 30, 2016, the minimum distance to Mars will be about 75 million km. That is, the planet can be observed as a bright star.

As the expert summed up, most likely the opposition of Mars in 2003 “migrated” to the current one. It is possible that such things are deliberately created to “entertain the public.”

“There is a lot of information on the Internet now, but there is not enough experience,” notes Maxim Khovrchiev. “But I want to try to see “something interesting.”

According to a senior researcher at the Planetarium, even without “far-fetched facts,” there is now something to rejoice at: Mars is paired with Saturn. If you find an area free of buildings, or climb onto the roof of a high-rise building, you will see this phenomenon in St. Petersburg.

“I remember we observed this phenomenon at the Planetarium - it was literally level with the spire of the Peter and Paul Fortress. From the Planetarium to the Peter and Paul Fortress is literally 600 meters. And so - all this week there are a lot of interesting daytime observations. Just recently we observed a sunspot almost as big as Neptune. A wonderful sight! With the help of black glass, anyone could see it."

Last year, a sensational message appeared on English-language sites - and migrated to Russian-language sites: on August 6, 2011, residents of the Australian city of Busby saw... two Moons in the sky! Astronomers helplessly shrugged: they were not ready to say anything about the second satellite of the Earth, about which no one knew anything until now... Photographs and even videos of the unique phenomenon were attached. Some enthusiasts said that the ancients knew about the second moon - and the two letters “O” in the English word moon (moon) designate exactly two moons (the fantastic knowledge of the ancients is generally one of the most discussed topics in our time)…

Alas, the sensation turned out to be an ordinary “duck”, and not very well done: attentive readers noticed that the surface of the “second moon” was the same as that of the first (only the image was rotated and painted in a different color) - it can’t, in in fact, there should be two absolutely identical celestial bodies! And the date was chosen poorly: at that time there could not have been a full moon in Australia - not even one... The administrator of one site even stated that he would not delete this note - he would leave it as “an example of nonsense.”

Yes, the Earth is unlucky with satellites - even Mars has two of them... so the desire of earthlings to see two moons in the sky is understandable. However, it is possible that this was once possible! But there was no one to look at the sky then.

4 billion years ago, a planet roughly the size of Mars collided with the Earth (it was called Theia) and the Moon was formed from the debris. Scientists have long noticed that its “light” side (facing the Earth) and “dark” are different: one is flatter, the other is more mountainous, with a thicker crust... American researchers E. Asphog and M. Jutzi suggested that after a collision with Theia formed not one, but two satellites of the Earth! The second was smaller than the Moon - 1200 km in radius - and over time it fell on the Moon, after which the debris was evenly distributed over the surface of the dark side.

But another American scientist, W. Cassidy, believes that we had a second moon in quite historical times - 6-7 thousand years ago, so that humanity retained the memory, if not of the satellite itself, then of its death: the Sumerian goddess Inanna, crossing the sky in a dazzling radiance, the ancient Greek myth of Phaeton, and the English folklore researcher J. Frazer found a similar motif in the legends of 130 Indian tribes!

W. Cassidy could not help but remember these legends while working on meteorites found in the north of Argentina in the Campo del Cielo area. Back in the 16th century. the Spanish conquistadors discovered there a huge metal block, which - as the Indians claimed - fell from the sky in time immemorial... At the beginning of the 19th century, an iron meteorite weighing about a ton was discovered there, the largest fragment of which is now in the British Museum. In subsequent years, many meteorites were found in Campo del Cielo - from small ones to a “record holder” of 33.4 tons... the “heavenly iron” was also discovered by the expedition of W. Cassidy. The composition of the meteorites found in these places indicated that they were fragments of one object. This happens: a large meteorite explodes in the atmosphere - but usually the debris scatters over an area not exceeding 1600 m, but here we were talking about 17 km! Moreover, chemical analysis showed the “relationship” of the Argentine finds with a meteorite found in 1937... in Australia! And the crater in which it was found is not the only one in the area.

W. Cassidy managed to establish the “age” of the disaster - 5800 years. What could have caused it? According to the scientist, it was the second satellite of the Earth, which revolved around our planet for 1000 years, gradually approaching it, until it collapsed under the influence of the Earth's gravity - and then the debris fell to Earth in the form of meteorites... that's how we lost the second Moon.

However, from time to time phenomena occur that look like “two moons.” So, on August 27, 2011 at 0.30, Mars passed at a very close distance from the Earth - and it could be seen with the naked eye. Of course, it was not the size of the Moon - but still larger than the stars (so we could get an idea of ​​what we could observe if we had a second satellite). The next time such a miracle is expected is in 280 years.

There are also so-called false moons - a special case of a halo, a luminous circle that appears around the sun or moon due to the refraction of light in specially arranged ice crystals in the clouds. The circle may not be completely visible, some of its parts may be brighter - then bright spots appear to the left and right of the star - these are false suns or moons (it turns out not two, but even three moons). True, it is not easy to see false moons: they are extremely rare, they glow weakly and dimly... False suns look much more “expressive”, sometimes there are even four of them - but this phenomenon is infrequent, and they remember it for a long time... especially if it preceded some events , with which it can be associated. Thus, the infamous campaign of Prince Igor against the Polovtsians was accompanied not only by a solar eclipse, but also by such a “heavenly sign.”

In a word, sad as it may be, we will not be able to see two moons in the night sky. But no one bothers us to imagine distant planets, where you can see two, three, or as many moons as you like... and maybe someday we will reach them after all?

Since the beginning of summer, reports began to appear on the Internet that at the end of August Mars will approach the Earth at a record close distance. Astrophysicists did not give official confirmation, but the news confidently circulated on the Internet for more than one week. We decided to find out whether this is true or just another online fake, and also tried to find out what this unique cosmic phenomenon with the impossibly beautiful name “The Great Confrontation of Mars” is?

According to unverified Internet sources, Mars is about to get so close to Earth that a double moon can be seen with the naked eye. The approach is promised on the night of August 27 - at midnight. The time zone, by the way, is not specified in the messages. The next time, according to “experts,” a similar cosmic event will occur in 2287. “To the naked eye, the planet will be visible as a full Moon. It will look like two moons above the Earth,” some social network users write, while others actively “repost” these posts.

However, are these data true?

By the way, those who are waiting for the “approach of Mars” have ardent opponents who ridicule this “news.” Their main argument is that news of the approaching “multi-moon” appears on the Internet with enviable frequency every August. Indeed, people first started talking about this unusual phenomenon at the end of the summer of 2003. Since then, “Mars is coming” with enviable regularity.

We decided to turn to specialists for clarification.

Astronomer Pavel Skripnichenko immediately stated that the “news” about the approaching unique phenomenon, when two moons can be observed in the sky, is fake.

“The fact is that the orbit is not circular. From time to time the planets are closer or further away. This is a common occurrence and happens regularly,” Pavel explained. — The approach, called the opposition of Mars, occurs once every year and a half. There is still a Great Controversy. This is when the planets are as close as possible. The Great Controversy happens about once every hundred years. There is nothing supernatural or fantastic in this.”

Impressed by the photos floating around the internet, we asked if the Mars opposition really looks like two moons in the sky.

“This is all untrue. These pictures are fiction. Mars looks like an orange or red star,” Pavel said. “It’s hard to confuse him with any star.”

The astronomer explained that on the day of Mars’s opposition, or rather at night, it is visible even without special equipment. Of course, we asked where and how this phenomenon could be observed.

“In cases of opposition of Mars, no special equipment is required,” Pavel said. — The planet is visible to the naked eye. The main thing is that it is cloudless. You need to drive a little away from the city. Closer to midnight you need to look south. Mars is difficult to confuse with another planet. If you have a telescope, you can see the polar caps and details on the surface.”

But, unfortunately, the last approximation. The same confrontation of Mars took place in May 2016, and the next one, according to the website astrobel.ru, will take place on July 27, 2018. However, for those who are in the mood for romance and planning to spend the night with their eyes on the sky, we have some good news. The fact is that by the end of summer visibility becomes almost perfect. The atmosphere becomes transparent, so even an amateur telescope is able to convey the nuances of the starry sky.

Fans of amazing celestial phenomena always expect some unusual shows from nature. Even if nothing special is expected in the near future, they will embellish and make up any completely ordinary phenomenon. And now everyone is looking forward to the day when they can admire the two Moons.

Two Moons in the sky, when to look

The fact is that, as experts say, on the night of June 27-28, Mars will pass very close to the Earth. Experts promise that it will look very beautiful: two luminous Moons will rise above us. True, not everyone considers the described event so spectacular, but only those who did not study astronomy well...

Two moons in the sky like this

But purely physically this is unrealistic, because the Earth has only one satellite. And even with the strongest refraction of light from the Sun, the illusion of two Moons will not arise. Seeing two moons in the sky is something fantastic or invented by people themselves. We will never see this, since there is no second Moon. Therefore, you should not expect this in 2018, and in subsequent years too.

But still there is some truth in this. On June 27, 2018, almost throughout the entire territory of Russia, with the exception of the Far East, two Moons will be visible at once. This is a rare astronomical phenomenon and will occur at 00.30 Moscow time. This will be the longest lunar eclipse in the last hundred years. And it will last 1 hour 43 minutes, while the next such phenomenon is expected only in 2287.

The previous total lunar eclipse occurred on January 31, 2018, with a depth of 1.32 lunar diameters in the southern part of the earth's shadow. The eclipse was visible across most of Russia. The best visibility conditions were in Eastern Siberia and the Far East.

Astronomers respond to the hype about two moons above the Earth

According to Tomsk Planetarium astronomer Evgeny Parfenov, in reality a double moon is impossible.

“The distance from the Earth to the Moon is 380 thousand km, and to Mars – 60 million km,” notes the specialist.

The fake about the double moon, according to his explanations, has been appearing in the news since 2003. Then the Red Planet really came closer to Earth and looked bright.