Full Moon falls on Sunday 17 August, however we (blissfully ignorant) Sri Lankans celebrate Nikini (almost) Full Moon Poya on Saturday 16 August. The Full Moon falls with a partial eclipse starting around mid-night on Saturday. Exact times are given below.

Photo Gallery

Taking these pictures were physically exhausting. It was quite humid and the mosquitoes were having a party biting by black ass! But it was worth the effort. I took as many as 200 pictures and most of them were blur thanks to cloud cover. Next time I'm going to the dry zone!! I used Dr. Ray's Meade ETX-90 telescope. With my Canon EOS 350D mounted on it, I could not photograph steep angles as the Camera constrains the telescope side mounts. So I had to make use of my Canon AF 75-300mm lens.

Following are pictures taken by various astronomers and photographers. I have obtained permission to publish their pictures. Copyrights apply. Please do not download or print without their permission.

Anthony Ayiomamitis

• Location: Northeastern outskirts of Athens, Greece
• Optics: AP 160 f/7.5 StarFire EDFAP 1200GTO GEM Canon EOS 300D
• Comments: The year's fourth eclipse and second lunar eclipse went out with a bang, for Luna put on an impressive display during the course of approximately three hours involving changes in phase, intensity and colouration. It is most unfortunate that a good portion of western Europe was overcast with heavy clouds or rains. In spite of the fact that the depth of the partial eclipse was 81%, a hint of red was visible in the eclipsed disk well before maximum totality and when the disk was only 50% within the umbral shadow. At maximum, the eclipsed disk was quite dark with only a trace of light and, as indicated by the attached photo at maximum, a long exposure (3.2 seconds at ISO 200) was required.

Elias Chasiotis

• Location: Markopoulo, Greece
• Optics: William Optics Zenithstar 105, Canon 450D
• Comments: The fact that most of the moon was covered by earth's umbra gave the impression of a near total lunar eclipse. Just some minutes after maximum, a star appeared from the eclipsed limb.

Lunar Cycle

Source: NASA - Lunar Prospector
The revolution of the Moon around the Earth causes the Moon to appear to change shape in the sky. These different shapes are called "phases" of the moon. The Moon passes through a cycle of eight phases every 29.5 days. There is no definite starting point for the cycle, but phases follow one behind the other in a strict order.

1. Waxing Crescent
   
   The visible moon is partly but less than one-half illuminated by direct sunlight while the illuminated part is increasing.
2. First Quarter
   
   One-half of the moon appears illuminated by direct sunlight while the illuminated part is increasing.
3. Waxing Gibbous
   
   The Moon is less than fully illuminated but greater than half illuminatedby direct sunlight while the illuminated part is increasing.
4. Full Moon
   
   The visible moon is fully illuminated by direct sunlight.
5. Waning Gibbous
   
   The Moon is less than fully illuminated but greater than half illuminatedby direct sunlight while the illuminated part is decreasing.
6. Last Quarter
   
   One-half of the moon appears illuminated by direct sunlight while the illuminated part is decreasing.
7. Waning Crescent
   
   The visible moon is partly but less than one-half illuminated by direct sunlight while the illuminated part is decreasing.
8. New Moon
   
   The visible moon is not fully illuminated by direct sunlight.

Nikini Poya

Attainment of Arahatship by the Buddha's chief attendant, Ananda Maha Thera, commencement of the first Dhamma Sangayana, convocation to settle the Buddhist canon and Pasu Vas or the commencement of the Vas period by those who had not started the period of sojourn on the Esala full moon day are some of them.

It was on the Nikini Full Moon day three months after The Buddha's parinibbana that the first Dharma sangayana-convocation was held to settle the Buddhist canon.

The immediate cause for conducting the first Dhamma Sangayana was the behaviour of a monk named Subaddha after the parinibbana of the Buddha.

All the ordinary bhikkus who had not attained Arahatship excepting monk Subaddha lamented and mourned over the prinibbana of the Buddha. Buddha's Agra Upasthayaka chief attendant and Dharma Bhandagarika - the treasurer of Dhamma, Ananda Maha Thera was among those who lamented. Monk Subaddha who had become an ascetic during his old age not actually to practice acsetism but because he had no other way of living and requested the monks not to mourn but to be happy as thee was no one after Buddha to give them orders.

The Maha Sangha led by Maha Kashyapa Thera felt that the behaviour of ascetic Subaddha was an indication of probable problems among the members of the sangha community and on Esala Full Moon day two months after the parinibbana of Buddha to hold a convocation to settle the Buddhist canon. This is the first Dhamma Sangayanawa (Convocation).

It was conducted during a period of three months from the following Nikini Full Moon Poya day.

Source: Daily Mirror

Eclipse Times for Sri Lanka

Source: NASA - Lunar Eclipse Page

Absolute Eclipse Times

Source: NASA - Lunar Eclipse Page

References

1. NASA - Lunar Eclipse Page
2. Daily Mirror: The significance of Nikini Poya
3. NASA - Lunar Prospector
4. Astrophotography by Anthony Ayiomamitis