No, not this Dark Side of the Moon.....
I'm talking about the
real dark side of the real moon (fabulous article with outstanding animation).
Many people use the phrase "the dark side of the moon" to describe something mysterious and unknown. The dark side of the moon is supposed to be the side we never see, the side that faces away from Earth. This side of the moon faces the cold, black expanse of space. What could be on this side of the moon? What are conditions like there? Is it really always dark?
Join me below the cheese curl.
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We see the same face of the moon since it's tidally locked with the earth. It doesn't rotate like the earth does so the dark side has been hidden. And it's not always dark, either.
While it's true that some part of the moon is dark at any particular time, it's not always the same part. That's because, like Earth, the moon has a daytime and a nighttime. So if you were to set up camp on the moon and stay put, you would eventually see the sun rise and fall. You'd experience both day and night.
Since the dark side of the moon shifts as the lunar day progresses, it's more accurate to say that the moon has a day side and a night side, just like the Earth. The day side is the side currently receiving sunlight, while the night side faces away from the sun. What does this have to do with the side we see when we look at the moon from Earth? That's where things can get confusing. The side of the moon we see is sometimes the day side, and sometimes the night side. It all depends on when during the lunar day we look at the moon.
A more accurate term to describe the side of the moon we see is the near side. The side opposite the near side is the far side. The near side will always face toward us, and the far side will always face away. This is true even on the opposite side of the Earth. If you were to fly from America to Australia just to get a look at the moon down there, you'd see the same features you're familiar with back home.
So, it's not the "dark side" after all. It's just the "far" side of the moon and, unless we go personally into space, we'll never see it with our own eyes like we see the "near" side.
Now, however, we get the opportunity to "see" the far side with an incredible amount of detail. NASA created an detailed animation of the "far side" based on the data the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has sent back. Watch it and be amazed at seeing something you'll never see with your own eyes:
For further information and more knowledge of the moon, see the article linked at the top of the diary.
A bit more information (and larger video) here and here and tons more (many articles) information on the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter from NASA.
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TOP MOJO
February 19, 2015
(excluding Tip Jars and first comments)
Got mik!
1) Christalmighty, and he's the "smart" one. by Bob Johnson — 159
2) Russ Feingold ... by Bronxist — 125
3) Interesting Matthews leaves out Hillary by Dallasdoc — 112
4) Cops should be held individually liable by quince — 110
5) I was there by DFWmom — 106
6) Well, honestly, Bob... by Youffraita — 105
7) The best thing Hillary, and these other re-treads, by Foxwizard — 100
8) Long past due by gchaucer2 — 95
9) Know what? by MargaretPOA — 91
10) Lower taxes = less civilization = more chaos by a2nite — 81
11) Astounding! by palmer18 — 77
12) Take your bigotry and shove it.. by TexasTom — 76
13) You can thank Richard Nixon for No-Knock raids. by CwV — 74
14) so much for "do no harm" as medical malpractice by annieli — 74
15) Dr. Vesna Roi, who prays on whether human care by annieli — 74
16) The choice is not between train and pipeline by CwV — 71
17) Spoke with convict fire fighters by MarEng — 67
18) Welcome to DailyKos by Demi Moaned — 64
19) No, he's not. by TDDVandy — 64
20) What else would you expect from TexASS? by Joe Bacon — 64
21) When people suggest that I chose to be trans by MargaretPOA — 64
22) A $3 million settlement is too low. by jayden — 62
23) The fact that you don't see traction for ABH by Dallasdoc — 62
24) There's no other way to say this... by markthshark — 62
25) Netanyahu wouldn't even give the administration by Paleo — 60
26) Note to Rand Paul: by MarkFL — 60
27) That is nonsense, John, and you know it by slatsg — 59
28) One quibble: by Youffraita — 59
29) They ask accusatory questions by democracy inaction — 58
30) Not so sure about that. by bastrop — 57
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