The night sky at Rye
38° 22 ′ S    144° 49′ E

Current Phase of the Moon.
This is a JavaScript applet by Darren Osbourne. It shows the Moon as Southern Hemisphere viewers see it.

One of the great joys of a visit to Rye is the night sky. Rye is far enough from the city lights to have truly dark skies. What is more, the weather is really quite different from that of Melbourne; there are many more cloudless skies.

Of primary importance is the state of the moon. This Moon calendar enables you to look up the phases of the moon for any date, past or future. However, please note that this data comes from a web site in Texas and our moon looks back-to-front in the Northern Hemisphere!

For us in the Southern Hemisphere the New Moon (the one seen in the early evening, just after dusk) is shaped like a letter C.
While for us, the Old Moon (the one seen in the early morning just before dawn) is shaped like a backwards letter C.
The Moon Calendar shows these the other way round!

To check on the rising, setting and transit times for the Sun, the Moon and the naked eye planets visit Melbourne Planetarium web site.
Note: the transit time for the sun gives you the time in Melbourne when the sun is at the Solar Noon.   Knowing this gives you the number of minutes to add to the reading on your sundial in order to get Civil Time (the time on your watch: either Standard Time or Daylight Saving Time depending on the time of year).

 

The Moon Illusion Diagram from: McCready

The famous Moon Illusion is spectacular from Rye but you must get your timing right. Go down to the foreshore and look East (towards Mount Martha and Arthur's Seat) just as the sun goes down on the evening of the Full Moon. It is an unforgettable experience. It happens once a month and it does not cost a cent.
The moon illusion is one of the most famous of all illusions. Stated simply, the full moon, when just above the horizon, appears much larger than when it is overhead. Yet the moon, a quarter of a million miles away from the earth, always subtends the same angle wherever it is in the sky (approximately 0.5 degrees). What you are seeing is a genuine visual illusion! If you take a photograph the moon appears the correct size. The illusion is happening inside your head.
Time your visit and enjoy one of science's unsolved mysteries. There are many web sites devoted to the Moon Illusion. Sadly many of them offer inadequate explantions. Donald E. Simanek gives a good review and I am told, for those who wish to dig deeper, the best book on the subject is by Ross and Plug.

For times when you can see the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), the International Space Station (ISS) and many many other things astronomical visit Heavens-above.
This site also has very clear whole sky charts.
Note: this link to the Heavens-above web site has been configured for Rye, Victoria.

A rather quicker way of finding when the International Space Station is visible from Melbourne is to click here......      View the ISS from Melbourne

Yet another star and planet finder which I have configured for Rye. This one also shows horizon views. Go to SkyTonight.com.

Possibly the best resource and one which is updated each month is Southern SkyWatch.

If you wish to discover more: the Mornington Peninsula Astronomical Society (formerly the Astronomical Society of Frankston), holds regular Public Viewing Nights where members of the public can view the night sky through a range of telescopes, attend an audio visual presentation and enjoy a complimentary coffee, tea or cold drink. Also the MPAS also holds monthly general meetings for current and prospective members.
Visit the MPAS web site for further details.

If you are concerned by the mismatch between the astronomical data to be found in the links referred to above and the well know astrological data associated with "Star Signs" an explanation can be found at The Real Zodiac web site.

You might also like to see a young Carl Sagan talk on Astrology ...

 

If you liked this page please do not fail to visit the page describing Rye's Superior Mirage.
Unlike the Moon Illusion you can photograph mirages; they are not illusions!

 

 

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