Gassendi

Gassendi

17.5" f/3.4 Archie Carl | 330x

Vancouver, Washington | December 2025

Context:

The observation took place on the 30th to 31st of December from 9PM to 1AM, during this time, the crater rotated on its face as the Earth rotated on its axis. The final orientation of the sketch matches what I observed in the eyepiece for the majority of the night.

What stood out to me? 

The rilles flanking the small crater next to the central peak range! I could not help but notice those two rilles flanking the small crater glistening against the mottled crater floor. What also drew my attention was the mottled crater floor on the lower half of the Gassendi crater taking on an extremely granular appearance during moments of steady seeing. It demands your attention, and reminds me of a thick and rich luxurious carpet floor. The smaller portions of the mountain range that surrounds the crater also takes on granular appearance during moments of steady seeing. 

The Process: 

First, the sketch was roughed in at the eyepiece, only the outlines and placement of the craters were drawn in, along with the shadow outlines. Then the sketch was put away, and the object observed for the remainder of the night. Notes were taken to denote what stood out, what I noticed, and my general impressions. 

The next day, a base layer of white pastel using a Conté à Paris crayon block was put down to establish the lunar floor, and the crater outlines were re-drawn as necessary using a white pastel pencil from Conté à Paris. An additional layer of black pastel using a Conté à Paris crayon block was put down near the bottom, and mixed with white pastel to establish a graduated terminator leading to the dark side of the moon.  

A Gray Conté à Paris pastel crayon block was used to sketch in the surrounding mountain range around the main crater rim, and a white Conté à Paris pastel pencil or crayon block was used to delineate the brighter peaks throughout the sketch, depending on the precision required. A black Conté à Paris fusain charcoal pencil was used to draw in shadows. 

A tiling sponge was cut up into appropriate sized pieces to blend in the lunar floor. Blending stumps were used to lesson the harsh whites of the mountain peaks, and for granular control of blending as well.