this post was submitted on 22 Sep 2024
159 points (100.0% liked)
Space
8677 readers
249 users here now
Share & discuss informative content on: Astrophysics, Cosmology, Space Exploration, Planetary Science and Astrobiology.
Rules
- Be respectful and inclusive.
- No harassment, hate speech, or trolling.
- Engage in constructive discussions.
- Share relevant content.
- Follow guidelines and moderators' instructions.
- Use appropriate language and tone.
- Report violations.
- Foster a continuous learning environment.
Picture of the Day
The Busy Center of the Lagoon Nebula
Related Communities
๐ญ Science
- !astronomy@mander.xyz
- !curiosityrover@lemmy.world
- !earthscience@mander.xyz
- !esa@feddit.nl
- !nasa@lemmy.world
- !perseverancerover@lemmy.world
- !physics@mander.xyz
- !space@beehaw.org
- !space@lemmy.world
๐ Engineering
๐ Art and Photography
Other Cool Links
founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
Maybe someone smarter than me can answer a question that this picture prompted in my mind. How come Mars in just a pinprick in the sky for us looking at Mars from Earth, but a crescent is visible of the earth from the surface of Mars?
Edit: I am as dumb as I expected. Thanks for the responses, and a big fuck you to the person who shamed me for my ignorance. I'm glad that there was only one
Phobos, the moon, is what is a crescent in this photo.
Although, at a high enough zoom, Earth could also be a crescent.
Planets closer to the sun than you can be in a range of places relative to you and the sun, and so you can see parts of it that are illuminated and parts that are in shadow. Venus and Mercury can both be seen as crescents when viewed from the Earth
When you're looking at a planet further out than you are, you only see the part of the planet that's facing the sun because that's the same part that facing you. So from Earth, the planet Mars looks like a disc.