We owe our life to the Moon (and puddles...) January 11 2016, 0 Comments

I’ll begin this year’s posts with an audacious statement:

We owe life itself to the moon.

And water.

Well, actually the puddles left by the tides.

I’m no scientist, but in some recent reading about the moon, I discovered a fascinating snippet: We actually owe life on Earth to the moon. Crazy huh?

Here’s the story: When the moon was formed it caused a fluctuation in the Earth’s orbit, which eventually slowed down Earth’s rotation and moderated the tides. These changes were essential for forming the biological building blocks of life.

Want proof? Walk along the ocean’s edge and look into a few tide pools. You’ll see a remarkable variety of life in there. As ocean waves splash up on the rocks during high tides, the rocks trap the water and the sun heats it up, gradually creating a concentrated soup that supports the processes necessary for creating life. So puddles are actually little bassinettes for baby life forms! Who knew?

I suspect that at the root of our fascination with the dull rock we know as the moon there may be a deep seated memory of its influence on life as we know it. The Sun is essential for providing light, warmth, and gravity for sure. But it was the Sun and moon together, weaving in and around each other, that eventually produced the right cadence and sequence to create life on Earth; an unbelievable range of creatures, in fact, capable of surviving in an equally astounding range of climatic conditions.

So now when I look up at the moon I say, “Thank you.” for keeping our orbit a little lopsided and for dancing with the Sun to create the beautiful ebb and flow of the tides.

And puddles. Thanks for those, too.

 Here is a great article from Scientific American to fill out the story in more scientific detail.

New moon blessed beginning to 2014 December 31 2013, 0 Comments

We start 2014 with a new moon. It also happens to be what they recently call a "Super Moon" meaning the moon happens to be closer to the Earth then normal. This can sometimes cause higher highs and lower low tides. This New Year's we see a very low tide at night. 

New Moon days are great times to rest and reflect on what you want and how to move with intention into the next cycle of days. What's your next best move?

With each passing day over the new two weeks, we get to enjoy a little bit more daylight and moonlight until the Full Moon on the 16th. Gather up your creativity and good intentions and spread a little light around this new year.

Happy 2014 from Moonwater. 

The Moon Hulahooping Around the Earth April 16 2013, 0 Comments

Yesterday the Moon was at "Apogee"– the farthest point from the earth in its monthly rotation. It has less gravitational pull at apogee so you see lower variation in the high/low tide levels and lower tides in general. The low yesterday for Seattle was 0.1 and the high was 10.5.  The opposite holds true for when it's at "Perigee" — closest to the Earth. The next perigee will be on April 27th. The low on that day will be minus – 2.6 for Seattle and the high will be + 11.9.

Our oceans are pulled this way and that in accordance with the hulahooping cycle of the moon. 

Another Sky Note: The Lyrid Meteor Showers are coming up this weekend. They'll be peaking just before dawn on Monday April 22nd. Starting today and through the week when you walk at night you may catch a shooting star!