A unseasonably cold night dropped nighttime-low temperatures from 26deg C to 15C and stabilized the air.  The following two images are of the south pole region encompassing the current 7-2009 LCROSS potential target list.  This is intended to be the first in a planned series (weather permitting) through August 11 (73.8% illuminated fraction) and August 12 (64.2% illuminated fraction).  The intent of this series is to gather images of analogous lighting and libration to that that will be seen on the Oct. 9 11:30UT LCROSS impact as a finding aid to general public and amateur viewers. Image info: Date-UTime, OP and target are encoded in the file names.  Local circumstances:   Lunar Age:  18.4 days   Illuminated fraction: 89.2%   Altitude +45.25d Meade DSIProI Meade ETX125 2x barlow extender estimated at approx. f/30, unguided Seeing: Poor. 2-3 out of 5 secs stable Images can be found in directory: http://members.csolutions.net/fisherka/astronote/observed/LCROSS/20090809_11... Direct urls are: A. - South Pole Region - Unlabeled - emphasizing "Malapert shadow hole" http://members.csolutions.net/fisherka/astronote/observed/LCROSS/20090809_11... http://tinyurl.com/mart6v B. - Same as A - LTVT aligned http://members.csolutions.net/fisherka/astronote/observed/LCROSS/20090809_11... http://tinyurl.com/lwf74e C. - Same as A - LTVT aligned with LCROSS target craters labeled http://members.csolutions.net/fisherka/astronote/observed/LCROSS/20090809_11... http://tinyurl.com/lbv6ae D. - Same as A - Fits version http://members.csolutions.net/fisherka/astronote/observed/LCROSS/20090809_11... 11d52mN40d46mKAF0_SP.fit E. - Experimental utlra-overexposure - brings out hidden Shoemaker in "Malapert shadow hole" http://members.csolutions.net/fisherka/astronote/observed/LCROSS/20090809_11... http://tinyurl.com/ncjgcb F. - Same as E - LTVT aligned http://members.csolutions.net/fisherka/astronote/observed/LCROSS/20090809_11... http://tinyurl.com/lrhf2b G. - Same as E - LTVT aligned with LCROSS target craters labeled http://members.csolutions.net/fisherka/astronote/observed/LCROSS/20090809_11... http://tinyurl.com/lc7a74 H. - Same as E - Fits version http://members.csolutions.net/fisherka/astronote/observed/LCROSS/20090809_11... Items E through H are an experimental ultra-overexposure designed to see how faint my camera setup can penetrate into the "Malapert shadow hole."  The ultra-overexposure brings out Shoemaker hidden in the Malapert shadow. I do not own Photoshop.  It would appreciated if someone would experiment with the images in Photoshop to cut, paste and blend the ultra-contast view of Shoemaker in the interior of the "Malapert shadow hole" into the normal contrast image, item "A" above. I plan to try this again, but using two parallel aligned polarizes to reduce glare from the Moon's surface reflection. Another possible processing option might be to apply the Photomatix High Dynamic Range software featured in the June issue of Sky & Telescope inorder to generate an image that combines a normally exposed bright surface with an over-exposed image of shadowed areas. In this lunar age 18.4 day image, the usual finder crater suspects are visible: Moretus, Simpelius crater asterism (which looks like a snowangle that you made as a child), Malapert E on Leibnitz Beta,  Schomberger C and Malapert K.  Faustini is slightly over Leibnitz Beta.  Although I have not attempted autoguiding, potential lunar bright spots that hold during bad seeing moments include Casatus C (left-side middle of Item A), and further away - Rutherfurd in Calvius.  At first, Simpelius J and the central peak of Moretus appeared like good guide target candidates, but in poor seeing they smeared and became invisible. On the morning of 20090807, I also looked at the near full Moon in order to consider how to direct general public inquiries to find the lunar south pole. At times, the parallactic angle of the Moon can fool beginners (and intermediates) as to the location of the south pole.  I found the following low-power rules of thumb useful: 1) (For beginners), on the Moon the east west directions are reversed.  The eastern Moon corresponds to your geographic western horizon. The western Moon corresponds to your eastern geographic horizon. 2) Mentally draw a line between Tycho through Rutherfurd.  (Rutherfurd is young bright ray crater in the southeast corner of Clavius.) At the southern limb, the line intersects with Cabeus.  See diagram: http://members.csolutions.net/fisherka/astronote/observed/LCROSS/20090809_11... http://tinyurl.com/ldrj49 Mentally drawing a line between the central peaks of Tycho, along the eastern edge of Clavius and the central peak of Moretus, extends to Malapert and the south pole on the southern limb.  3) Mentally draw a line between bright crater Kundt, through the central peak of Tycho.  It intersects the southern limb at Cabeus. Malapert is one or two Tycho crater diameters to the lunar east along the southern limb.  http://members.csolutions.net/fisherka/astronote/observed/LCROSS/20090809_11... http://tinyurl.com/krz4ae Clear Skies - Kurt References: NASA LCROSS Team, 7-14-2009, Short List of LCROSS Candidate Impact Craters http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/LCROSS/main/candidate_craters_story.html Rick Baldridge, LCROSS Google Groups Moderator, Call for images, 7-12-2009 "I urge everyone with high-resolution planetary imaging capability to attempt a detailed image that can be posted on the NASA website to guide would-be imagers/videographers to the impact location." http://groups.google.com/group/lcross_observation/msg/30a27eb02b531a48