Full Moon and Full Moon

The object of numerous scientific studies and esoteric teachings, the inspiration of poets and romantics - all this is the full Moon. Photos of the night luminary illustrate articles about cosmic achievements and discoveries and at the same time about magic and superstitions. Literally every full moon is accompanied by an upsurge of interest in mystical phenomena and in representations, ancient and modern, associated with it. Someone they call an indulgent smile, many believe in such things unconditionally. What is the full moon from the point of view of astronomy, what superstitions are associated with it and what are the results of the studies that verify them, - this will be discussed below.

Phases

The moon, as you know, does not radiate light. We can admire the night beauty only thanks to the Sun. The moon reflects its rays and sends them to Earth. Accordingly, the phases of the night luminary are associated with the fact that its surface area at a particular time is available for solar radiation. The degree of illumination of the satellite's surface depends on the peculiarities of its mutual location, the Earth and our star.

The day of the full moon, or the full moon, comes at a time when the plane through the night and daylight, as well as our planet, turns out to be perpendicular to the ecliptic. The sun at this moment makes the entire round face of the satellite visible.

Ash-light

Sometimes a full moon occurs at an "unseasonable hour." This effect is known as "ash light". It consists in the fact that soon after the new moon or when the month is quite thin, the rest of the satellite's surface becomes noticeable. Pale, as if a moon-wrapped moon reflects a light that, having begun its journey from the Sun, passed through the atmosphere of the Earth. Less intense rays give rise to a dim glow and a characteristic ashy color.

Height

Those who regularly observe the sky know that on the full moon the star does not always rise high above the horizon. Every month his position changes somewhat. Especially the difference is noticeable in the summer compared with the winter one. The full moon in the warm season never rises high. In winter, on the contrary, it can be admired almost all night, as the satellite reaches practically to the zenith point. This difference is related to the features of the orbit of the night luminary.

For the terrestrial observer, the Moon moves practically along the same trajectory as the Sun. Its path passes through the zodiacal constellations, that is, it largely coincides with the ecliptic. True, there is a significant difference. The moon in winter is almost there, where the sun is in the summer, that is, high in the sky, and vice versa.

Eclipses

The trajectories of the day and night lights do not completely coincide. This fact has a rather pleasant effect: thanks to him we have the opportunity to see the satellite in all its glory, round and bright. If both luminaries passed through the sky the same way, then once or twice a month there would be a lunar eclipse. And it always would have been on a full moon. It was on this day that the Earth would completely block the night light from the rays of the day. Similarly, on the new moon, the satellite would always be located between the Sun and the Earth, that is, there would be a monthly total eclipse of our star.

In a familiar world, these phenomena do not happen very often. Eclipses occur only in those days when the Moon, full or new, passes the so-called nodes of the orbit - the points where the planes of its and Earth's motion intersect.

Illusion

The large full moon, the photo of which is presented in the article, is a phenomenon, according to scientists, associated with the height of the location of the night sky above the horizon. Several times a year, at a line where the earth meets the sky, you can observe a bright satellite, which seems much larger in size than usual. The word "apparent" here is not accidental. Researchers call this phenomenon "lunar illusion." Indeed, if you compare the night luminary with a coin at that moment, and then repeat the measurements, when the satellite rises higher and takes the standard dimensions, the result will be the same. The moon does not grow anymore - it's an optical illusion. The most interesting is that it has not yet received an exhaustive explanation: there are several theories, but against each one there is some counterargument. However, this does not prevent you from admiring the magnificent and little, albeit illusory, larger night light.

The illusion of the moon should not be confused with the super moon. This phenomenon is astronomical. It occurs on the days when the full moon or new moon coincides with the moment of passage of the perihelion by the companion, that is, the point of the minimum distance to the Earth. At night, the night star actually increases in size by about 14%.

Representations of the Ancients

In ancient times the ancestors of modern people were animated by natural phenomena, stars and planets. The expression "the magic of the full moon" was for them not a metaphor, but a statement of fact. The night star in the mythology of the ancients often opposed the daylight. Many peoples associated with it a negative, dark beginning, often female energies, passivity and everything related to witchcraft. The full moon was worshiped, feared, respected, tried to appease.

In more developed religious traditions, the worship of the animate luminary has been replaced by the service of the gods personifying him. In Greek mythology, this role was played by Artemis, Hecate and Selena, in the Roman - Diana. In Ancient Egypt, Luna was associated with the One, Khonsu and Yakh.

The echoes of the oldest notions of the influence of the night light on man are present in our lives today.

Anxiety night of the full moon

Perhaps, everyone knows superstitions, signs and mystical ideas associated with the full moon. The most stable of them describe the impact on health, mental and physical. It is believed that on a full moon people become more excitable. This is reflected primarily on the quality of night rest. Its duration decreases, the probability of insomnia increases, it takes more time to fall asleep. For the same reason, people with mental illness on such days may experience an exacerbation. Often, risk groups include epileptics. According to many people, the full moon increases the likelihood of seizures or their frequency. Increased excitability manifests itself in the increase in the level of crime, the number of accidents and other things. Also, this influence of the night luminary increases the sexual attraction. There is the notion that with a full moon, more children are born or the number of conceptions increases.

Astrologers recommend such days to devote to cases that require great effort. In the full moon due to the increase of the general energy it is possible to implement rather bold projects. It is good for such a time to appoint interviews and public speaking.

Part of the current understanding of the impact of the full moon was repeatedly tested by scientists in the past and present centuries.

Study of the question

In 2013, scientists in Switzerland checked the effect of the full moon on the quality of sleep. In the experiment, 33 people participated. During the full moon, scientists fixed the state of the various zones of the brain and compared them with the results obtained in another period. It turned out that on a full moon, a few days before and after, people experienced certain problems with sleep. The general condition was more restless. The time of falling asleep increased by about 5 minutes, the duration of sleep, on the contrary, decreased (by 20 minutes).

Scientific opinion

On the one hand, the study clearly confirms current views. On the other hand, only 33 people participated in the experiment, and this is too small for the results to be unambiguously true for all.

Most studies summarizing the numerous data obtained in the past years, on the other hand, do not find a connection between the lunar cycle and the behavior / condition of people. The analysis showed that the night light does not affect the number of suicides, nor the level of crime, nor the number of road accidents or fits of insanity. Also, no links were found between the aggressive behavior of animals and the full moon.

Scientists did not study the impact of the satellite of our planet on the number of correctly accepted decisions or successfully passed examinations. Perhaps such research is yet to come.

There are suggestions that the light of the full Moon or the tidal interaction of our planet with the satellite can influence a person. However, scientists do not confirm this data yet. Nevertheless, the full Moon still remains for many people an important factor affecting their behavior and life in general. As a rule, they quite rightly notice that scientists can make mistakes.