MSGID: 1:317/3 62b358dd   
   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
    EPOD - a service of USRA   
      
   The Earth Science Picture of the Day (EPOD) highlights the diverse processes   
   and phenomena which shape our planet and our lives. EPOD will collect and   
   archive photos, imagery, graphics, and artwork with short explanatory   
   captions and links exemplifying features within the Earth system. The   
   community is invited to contribute digital imagery, short captions and   
   relevant links.   
      
      
    Icons of Arizona   
      
      June 22, 2022   
      
       TomMc_CactusSaguaroMoonCaveCreekMarch19.2022#18ajpg (003)   
      
       TomMc_CactusSaguaroMoonCaveCreekMarch19.2022#8e (003)   
      
      Photographer:  Thomas McGuire   
      
      Summary Author:  Thomas McGuire   
      
      The images above combine two iconic symbols of Arizona, the stately   
       saguaro cactus and “ The Valley of the Sun,” as the greater   
      Phoenix area is often called. Both photos were taken on March 18, 2022,   
      at sunset as the full moon was rising.   
      
      Saguaro cacti are endemic to the  Sonoran Desert and are the tallest   
      cactus species native to North America –- some specimens are over 50 ft   
      (15 m) in height. The word “saguaro” originated in an indigenous   
      language spoken by peoples of the Sonoran Desert in what is now Mexico.   
      It’s pronounced “sah WAH roh.”   
      
      Taking  sunset or sunrise images with the moon in view is   
      challenging. The images featured here required a confluence of   
      conditions. My first task was finding a photogenic saguaro cactus on a   
      clear eastern horizon. Then I consulted astronomical tables in an   
       ephemeris to determine when the Moon would be fullest, as well as   
      the precise time and geographic direction of sunset. An added timing   
      and positioning consideration is that at this location the land rises   
      to the east about 5° above a flat horizon. Of course, a little luck   
      with clouds and stray light is also helpful. Note that the 2nd image   
      was taken in diminishing light, so it shows significantly more noise   
      ( graininess and color error) than the top photo.   
        * Cave Creek, Arizona Coordinates: 33.8334, -111.9507   
      
   Related EPODs   
      
       Icons of Arizona  Path of the Sun from Two Different Latitudes   
       Reflections on the Southern Wasatch Mountains  A Year of   
      Sunrises from Taipei, Taiwan  Archive - Soda Dry Lake  Above   
      Great Salt Lake: Colors, Contrasts, Arcs, and Angles   
       More...   
      
   Geography Links   
      
        *  Atlapedia Online   
        *  CountryReports   
        *  GPS Visualizer   
        *  Holt Rinehart Winston World Atlas   
        *  Mapping Our World   
        *  Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection   
        *  Types of Land   
        *  World Mapper   
      
   -   
      Earth Science Picture of the Day is a service of the  Universities   
      Space Research Association.   
      
   https://epod.usra.edu   
       
   --- up 16 weeks, 2 days, 21 minutes   
    * Origin: -=> Castle Rock BBS <=- Now Husky HPT Powered! (1:317/3)   
   SEEN-BY: 15/0 106/201 114/705 123/120 129/330 331 153/7715 229/110   
   SEEN-BY: 229/111 112 113 317 400 426 428 470 664 700 292/854 298/25   
   SEEN-BY: 305/3 317/3 320/219 396/45   
   PATH: 317/3 229/426