Other than observing the planets, on such a desperate night you might actually want to take a look at the Moon. Yes, I m serious - the full Moon. The various lunar details take on a different dimension under full-face illumination. As soon as you turn your scope on the Moon, you ll notice those craters that stand out brilliantly white. Under direct illumination, the floors of these craters have such a high albedo because the material itself is newer and more reflective than the average lunar surface.
Most lunar soil is actually about the color of an asphalt driveway.
An example of a bright feature is the crater Aristarchus, which first appears near the limb when the Moon is approaching full phase. The following CCD image from Michael Purcell includes the area around Aristarchus, with lunar north up . Even though the image wasn t taken near full Moon, the crater shows up brightly and hints at the spectacle to be seen with a higher angle of illumination. Besides its renown as the brightest object on the lunar surface, the thing that makes it especially prominent is that the crater is setting out pretty much by itself on the north edge of Oceanus Procellarum. While Aristarchus is a relatively new crater, Herodotus predates the surrounding maria, as evidenced by its smooth floor that was flooded by lava.