#DARKEST SIDE OF THE MOON JUMMP FULL#

Thank you, Kenny! Myth 4: There is no gravity on the moonīut of course the moon does have gravity. | Kenny Allen in Columbia City, Indiana, took this image on May 13, 2022. However, the moon is actually gray rather than pure white, on average much like the well-worn asphalt on most streets. The moon’s color varies somewhat according to its phase and position in the sky, although this color variation generally is too subtle for human eyes. The sun looks white when high in the sky, as does the moon, because of the way our eye-brain connection mixes all the colors together. Sunlight is composed of all colors, but peaks in the yellow-green range of the spectrum. The moon emits no light of its own, but rather shines by reflecting sunlight. Really.Īnd the color? Well, as with brightness, color is a subjective thing.

#DARKEST SIDE OF THE MOON JUMMP FULL#

That is approximately how bright the full moon is. Remember the old-style incandescent light bulbs? Now imagine a 100-watt light bulb located about 150 feet (46 meters) away and shining in an otherwise completely dark night. It appears very bright relative to the dark sky, and ordinarily looks white to the eye.

Comparatively speaking, however, the moon is neither particularly bright nor actually white. Myth 3: The moon is bright whiteĪnyone who has seen a full moon high in a clear sky late at night has a right to believe this. Notice that the moon’s near side has dark “maria” or “seas,” while the moon’s far side lacks these features. In a dark sky, the moon looks bright white, but this image captures its true asphalt-gray color. Near side of the moon, as seen through a telescope. You might think of it as “gumdrop” shaped. This makes it slightly similar to the shape of a typical bird egg that is larger on one “end” than on other. The moon exhibits very slight oblateness, but more important is the fact that the “side” of the moon that faces Earth is a bit larger than the side turned away from us. Look at a photo of Jupiter and you will see a good example of this. The shape of the moon is that of an oblate spheroid, meaning it has the shape of a ball that is slightly flattened. So, it’s natural to assume that it is actually spherical in shape – with every point on its surface equidistant from its center – like a big ball. Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon album cover from 1973. That’s why, as viewed from Earth, about 59% of the moon’s surface is exposed over the course of the moon’s (roughly) monthly orbit around the Earth. The moon occasionally exposes slightly more of its surface on the eastern or western extreme (depending on the location in the orbit).

Lunar libration is when we can see a bit further over one limb or the other. This is because a phenomenon called libration causes the moon’s viewing angle, relative to Earth, to change slightly over its orbit. A diligent observer on Earth can, over time, observe about 59% of the moon’s surface. In fact, only about 41% of the moon’s far side (a much more accurate and preferable term than dark side) is invisible to earthly observers. The Earth-facing side of the moon gives rise to another misconception that many people share, namely that we see only 50% of the moon from Earth. It is fully illuminated by the sun just as often (lunar daytime), and is in shade just as often (lunar night), as is the familiar Man in the Moon side we see. In fact, the side of the moon that is perpetually turned away from Earth is not darker than the side we see. This is (roughly) true and gives rise to the idea that there is a permanent dark side of the moon, a thought immortalized in Pink Floyd’s music and elsewhere. Most grammar school students know that the moon presents only one face or side to the Earth. Have you believed any of these myths? Myth 1: The moon has a permanent dark side Maybe it’s time to unearth a few moon myths and misconceptions. We have full moons, blue moons, Harvest moons, supermoons and any number of culturally relevant references to the moon. Read about the myth that the moon has a dark side, and about more moon myths, below. This image shows what many call the “dark side” of the moon. The Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR) satellite captured it, from about a million miles (1.6 million kilometers) out. | Here’s a unique view of the moon as it moved in front of the sunlit side of Earth in 2015.

Darkest side of the moon jummp