As long as I don’t blink
I came across a press release earlier this evening that announced the intention to crash a space ship on the moon next Saturday night.
Well, there you have it. No need to plan my long weekend entertainment any further. Forget travel, or movies, or hiding in the basement practicing euphonium. I just need to prepare myself for a really big show, as Ed used to say.
Checklist: warm coat; binoculars, (spare pair recommended); warm hat; empty bladder; several watches that have been synchronized with the US Naval Observatory; a shortwave receiver tuned to WWV Fort Collins CO; special eye drops to suppress the “blink” reflex.
With all my tools and accessories, and a weather forecast that presupposes clear skies, if I don’t get confused by other bright lights in the neighbourhood and instead stare intently at the lunar surface (dark half), I might see a brief flash of light as the object and the lunar surface have a planned collision!
Forget the photography idea; that’s why Al Gore invented the Internet. There will be photographic evidence galore, Mr. Gore.
For those of you who prefer precise details for your planning sessions:
August 30, 2006: Amateur astronomers, grab your telescopes. A spaceship is about to crash into the Moon, and you may be able to see the impact.
The spacecraft: SMART-1, a lunar orbiter belonging to the European Space Agency (ESA).
The impact site: Lacus Excellentiae (The Lake of Excellence), an ancient, 100-mile wide crater in the Moon’s southern hemisphere.
The time to watch: Saturday, September 2nd at 10:41 p.m. PDT (Sept. 3rd, 0541 UT).
So, start your engines, my viewers. The Saturday Night extravaganza is just days away!
