The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #158537   Message #3750355
Posted By: Nigel Parsons
12-Nov-15 - 04:50 PM
Thread Name: Folklore: Rumours you believed as a child
Subject: RE: Folklore: Rumours you believed as a child
From: GUEST
Date: 12 Nov 15 - 02:38 PM
When there's a full moon, low in the sky, it looks very big. However if you bend down and look at it between your legs it's normal size!
This may or may not be true but one thing is certain - you look pretty daft if you test it out!

True!
The moon close to the horizon appears bigger because you are comparing it to whatever else you can see, and because everything else (stars excepted) is closer, your sense of perspective makes the moon seem larger that it is when viewed in the middle of the sky (where it seems small and isolated).
Viewing it through your legs gives you an immediate & reliable sense of proportion, as your legs will be the same size whether you're viewing a moon near the horizon, or in clear space.