Earthshine simulator: Idealized images of the Moon
Abstract
Terrestrial albedo can be determined from observations of the relative intensity of earthshine. Images of the Moon at different lunar phases can be analyzed to derive the semi-hemispheric mean albedo of the Earth, and an important tool for doing this is simulations of the appearance of the Moon for any time. This software produces idealized images of the Moon for arbitrary times. It takes into account the libration of the Moon and the distances between Sun, Moon and the Earth, as well as the relevant geometry. The images of the Moon are produced as FITS files. User input includes setting the Julian Day of the simulation. Defaults for image size and field of view are set to produce approximately 1x1 degree images with the Moon in the middle from an observatory on Earth, currently set to Mauna Loa.
- Publication:
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Astrophysics Source Code Library
- Pub Date:
- December 2016
- Bibcode:
- 2016ascl.soft12010T
- Keywords:
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- Software