Whether using binoculars, a small telescope or the naked-eye, the Heavens-Above
website can help you to find your way around the night-time sky. In addition to detailed
sky charts, their website will help you find planets, asteriods, comets, satellites and their tracks across the sky.
To give accurate results, Heavens-Above requires the latitude and longitude of your location. As a starting point, when we link to Heavens-Above,
we pass this GPS location for Moon Valley Canyon:
33.637540, -112.081540
Once you're on the Heavens-Above website, you can improve its accuracy by giving a more precise longitude and latitude as your actual position.
Curious and Interesting Names Near Moon Valley Canyon ...
As we travel, we always see a community with a name that gives pause. While there are names which are interesting or familiar, some catch our attention or strike our fancy. We always wonder about such a name. If time permits and the community is not too far, we'll usually try to make a side-trip.
Cactus (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cactus have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers, Almanacs & Directories that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a community such as Moon Valley Canyon to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<2> beginning in Moon Valley Canyon and extending to:
Phoenix, which is the Seat of Maricopa County, lies 12 miles [19.3 km]<2> to the south. If you could walk a straight line from Moon Valley Canyon to Phoenix, with an average speed<3> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take five to six hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take nearly four hours.
Phoenix, which is the State Capital of Arizona, lies 12 miles [19.3 km] to the south (S). The buggy would take nearly four hours and walking would take five to six hours.
The White House (Washington, DC) is 1,972 miles [3,173.6 km] to the east northeast (ENE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take three full days, a buggy would take 77 days and walking would take 112 days.
The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 7,436 miles [11,967.1 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<5>
The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 8,201 miles [13,198.2 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<6>
The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 6,140 miles [9,881.4 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
Footnotes ...
<1>
The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<2>
Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Moon Valley Canyon) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Moon Valley Canyon. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 33.6375, Longitude: -112.0815 In this case, the coordinates for Moon Valley Canyon have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<3>
While we have tried to pick reasonable speeds, the rate of travel is very theoretical - obstacles like fences, hills, lakes, river crossings and rest stops have been ignored. When we say 'Days' of travel, we're assuming 8 hours of travel per day.
<4>
The shortest line can be visualized by stretching a string on a Globe from Point A to Point B - this is known as a Great Circle Route. Where you might expect the shortest route from Moon Valley Canyon to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East.
<5>
The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 331.194 degrees.
<6>
The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 329.992 degrees.
<7>
The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 322.176 degrees.