Sheffield, home to steel, the Arctic Monkeys, and now… an amateur astronomer with an uncanny ability to capture celestial chortles? Brace yourselves, moon gazers. In a ‘once in a blue moon’ event, local stargazer Reginald P. Starfield has allegedly located and photographed the elusive ‘Man in the Moon’. We at The Witty Whistle were privileged to be the first to receive this astrological revelation, an image that is now grinning down at our stunned faces.
Starfield, who, during the day, is a humble biscuit tester for a local confectionery company, has always had a fascination for the heavens. However, this fascination reached an all-time high when he presented his groundbreaking photograph, revealing what appears to be a smiling face peering down from our lunar neighbour.
The story of how this came to pass reads like a tale straight out of a sci-fi novel. Armed with nothing more than a second-hand telescope he got from a car boot sale and a dash of Yorkshire grit, Starfield spent countless nights scanning the lunar surface from his backyard. His patience finally paid off when he spotted a crater arrangement that bore an uncanny resemblance to a human face.
“I just adjusted my telescope, and there he was”
Starfield told The Witty Whistle. “It was as if the Man in the Moon was photobombing my stargazing session. I grabbed my camera and snapped a shot before he could duck back behind a moon mountain or something.”
The low quality photograph is a sight to behold. The lunar visage, complete with craters forming eyes, a nose, and a seemingly cheeky grin, has left viewers flabbergasted and a little tickled. Skeptics argue that the face is a result of pareidolia – the tendency to interpret a vague stimulus as something known to the observer, such as seeing shapes in clouds…or faces on the moon.
Regardless, this photo is causing quite a stir in both the astronomical and local community alike. Residents have been celebrating this finding with impromptu ‘moon parties’, and sales of telescopes have skyrocketed across Sheffield.
As for Starfield, he’s become a local hero overnight, or should we say, over-moon? “I’m chuffed,” he admits. “I’ve always told folks there’s a man in the moon, and now I’ve got proof. He’s quite a looker, isn’t he?”
And so, whether you’re a believer or not, next time you find yourself under the night sky, don’t forget to wave hello to our new lunar friend, the Man in the Moon. Who knows? If you’re lucky, he might just grin right back at you.
Keep looking up, readers, and remember: space is full of surprises. You heard it here first, at The Witty Whistle, where we take the ‘ugh’ out of ‘stargazing’ and replace it with ‘ah!’
