Analemmas

[cjsmith]

I think the lines on a sundial should be long thin figure-eights.

If the moon has earthalemmas, what shape are they?

I wish moon inhabitants could use a sundial during the 2-week "day" and an earthdial during the 2-week "night", but sadly for my poetic notions, that wouldn't work at all. The Moon People threw away all their earthdials generations ago, cursing the slick salesman who had sold them. He lived out his life in bitter exile.

Comments

[deyo.livejournal.com]

If the moon has earthalemmas, what shape are they?

Sort of an egg-shape, with a smaller Earth toward the point. (http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap991108.html)

And the Earth wouldn't pass through a point on the geolemma during the day, it would move smoothly through the geolemma during the month. :)

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Thanks for that link! I was visualizing that very thing, that animation, while I was musing on all this stuff. But I never would have known where to go look for it again. :-)