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Mapping the "Dark Side of the Moon":The Accidental Art of NASA's Lunar Studies
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With the sad news of the death of Pink Floyd founder Richard Wright, it's time to dust off the old Pink Floyd album and reminisce about one of the iconic releases of the 1970's.
Although "Dark Side of the Moon" became one of those releases that takes on its own life, there's one fact to consider: there's no such thing as the dark side of the moon, scientifically speaking. Creatively speaking, of course, the darker essences, of many types, of our lunar satellite have long been catalysts for various forms of creation.
From Goddard Space Flight Center, astrophysicist Steve Bloom explains: "The term "dark side of the Moon" is really a misnomer, because the side that we are familiar with is dark just as frequently. A better term might be "far side of the Moon."
In fact, the dark and bright sides swap, from Earth's perspective, Bloom said. "The orbit of the Moon is such that one rotation is just about as long as one revolution in its orbit around the Earth. Because of this, one side is facing us during its orbit. However, this side is often dark. During a "new moon", the moon is between the Earth and the Sun, and so the side we know is totally dark. When the moon is opposite from the Sun, the side we know will be totally bright, and the far side will be dark. "
OK, that's the science. But what about the inadvertent art of the dark side of the moon? For more than 20 years, NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey have partnered to bring some scientific maps of the moon--and other planetary satellites and bodies--into scientific and public use. The color coding and mapping of some features have created some results that, while scientific, look like art--on a cosmic scale.
The artwork above reflects hills, valleys, ridges, and other characteristics of the dark side of the moon.
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