Quote:
Originally Posted by GH85Carrera
The moon can vary in apparent size by about 14% total. It does seem to be bigger when it is just above the horizon. Every time I really look at it I am amazed that humans have been there.
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It's been explained to me that the apparent change in size of the moon is due to perspective/frame of reference. Close to the horizon, there are familiar objects (i.e. trees, buildings, mountains) to give us a perspective of the size of the moon. But when the moon is up in the sky overhead, there's no frame of reference. On our retinas, the image is the same size. But in our minds, it appears larger on the horizon. Despite "knowing" this, I still have a hard time tricking my mind into thinking it's the same size in both instances.