Geology Fun Fact - The Dark Side of the Moon

Geology Fun Fact

Topic: Dark Side of the Moon

Contrary to popular opinion, and a Pink Floyd album, there is no actual "dark side" of the moon. A "dark side" insinuates that the sun never reaches that side, which isn't true in the case of the moon. The moon, however, is tidally locked to the Earth. This means that the same side of the moon faces the Earth at all times. It is like the moon is being swung around the Earth on a string with the string attachment on the side of the Earth at all times. This has been known for a long time, and the side on the opposite side of the Earth has been known as the "dark side", otherwise known as the "unknown side". But this "dark side" does get light from the sun. When the moon is in New Moon phase, meaning it is completely dark in the sky, the moon's opposite side, the "dark side", is completely lit. The percentage of that "dark side" being lit is the opposite of our light side. As more of the Earth's side is lit, less of the "dark side" is.

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