Astronomy Picture of the Day -- Find the Man in the Moon

NASA ^ | February 01, 2016 | (see photo credit)

[SunkenCiv]

Explanation: Have you ever seen the Man on the Moon? This common question plays on the ability of humans to see pareidolia -- imagining familiar icons where they don't actually exist. The textured surface of Earth's full Moon is home to numerous identifications of iconic objects, not only in modern western culture but in world folklore throughout history. Examples, typically dependent on the Moon's perceived orientation, include the Woman in the Moon and the Rabbit in the Moon. One facial outline commonly identified as the Man in the Moon starts by imagining the two dark circular areas -- lunar maria -- here just above the Moon's center, to be the eyes. Surprisingly, there actually is a man in this Moon image -- a close look will reveal a real person -- with a telescope -- silhouetted against the Moon. This featured well-planned image was taken in mid-January in Cadalso de los Vidrios in Madrid, Spain. Do you have a favorite object that you see in the Moon?

[SunkenCiv]

[Credit and Copyright: Dani Caxete]

[SunkenCiv]

The Big One

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[chrisser]

Do you have a favorite object that you see in the Moon?

I have a short list of people that I wish we could send there permanently. Does that count?

[Impy]

Can’t say I’ve seen the man in moon, I love looking at the moon though. I especially like it when it’s visible during the day.

[TexasCajun]

Cool pic.

[going hot]

Some day...some day...wham! to the moon!

[BitWielder1]

Nice Pic.
One of my pet peeves are cheap sci-fi movies from alien planets with a moon or moons that look exactly like ours.

[samtheman]

I actually see Alvin the Chipmunk wearing sun glasses.

[Huskrrrr]

[Red Badger]

Asian people don’t see a ‘Man in the Moon’.

Their mythology has a RABBIT in the Moon with subsequent story of how he got there.................

[Red Badger]

You must be Asian. They see a rodent, but it’s a rabbit...................

[SunkenCiv]

Or suns, for that matter? :’) I was pretty happy with the forest moon of Endor, because it was basically an Earthlike planet in orbit around a gas giant, which was in turn in orbit around a star. Would have been neat if they’d spent enough time there for the moon to pass into night. But that wasn’t necessary for the story.

[arthurus]

I can see the human(oid) face but cannot find that rabbit at all, even after seeing the drawn outline

[JRios1968]

[SunkenCiv]

The steaks are high!!

[NCC-1701]

Now that’s funny!

[kanawa]