Why we always see the man in the moon
Posted by staff / March 7, 2012
New research explains why the moon settled into an orbit with the “man”—rather than the moon’s crater-covered far side—facing Earth.
Many of us see a man in the moon—a human face smiling down at us from the lunar surface. The “face,” of course, is just an illusion, shaped by the dark splotches of lunar maria—smooth plains formed from the lava of ancient volcanic eruptions.
Previously, some scientists have thought the fact that we see the man is just the result of a coincidence, a sort of lunar coin toss, says Oded Aharonson, professor of planetary science at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). But he and his colleagues have now found that is not the case.
Full story at Futurity.
Photo credit: NASA/Goddard/Arizona State
I am becoming more and more intrested in our entire universe as I am getting on in years..