--- title: Watch NASA's Animation of the Dark Side of the Moon description: NASA has released an incredibly detailed animated clip of what the moon looks on the side that is never visible from earth. canonical: https://time.com/3700368/dark-side-of-the-moon-nasa-animation/ author: Helen Regan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-02-09T08:44:59.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-01T09:02:45.564Z article:section: Science og:title: Watch NASA's Animation of the Dark Side of the Moon og:description: It's just become the not-so-dark side og:url: https://time.com/3700368/dark-side-of-the-moon-nasa-animation/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt39856fefc2f80b3b/69877e30a988ca18ec6ac598/nasa-moon.jpg?branch=production&width=640&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 640 og:image:height: 360 og:image:alt: Scientific Visualization Studio og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Watch NASA's Animation of the Dark Side of the Moon twitter:description: It's just become the not-so-dark side twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt39856fefc2f80b3b/69877e30a988ca18ec6ac598/nasa-moon.jpg?branch=production&width=640&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # See the Dark Side of the Moon With This Incredible NASA Animation > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=c7496934-7d03-4480-bd9c-23ee3f46ef08&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: View From the Other Side - NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio [Watch (HLS stream): View From the Other Side - NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/DKCtH1KZ.m3u8) (1:53)  _Published 2015-02-09. View From the Other Side: NASA has released this animated video of what the dar side of the moon looks like._ by [Helen Regan](https://time.com/author/helen-regan/) ## Helen Regan Feb 9, 2015 8:44 AM UTC View From the Other Side: NASA has released this animated video of what the dar side of the moon looks like. by [Helen Regan](https://time.com/author/helen-regan/) ## Helen Regan Feb 9, 2015 8:44 AM UTC NASA has released an incredibly detailed [animated](http://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/details.cgi?aid=4253) clip of what the moon looks on the side that is never visible from earth. In the video, we see the far side going through a cycle of phases, much like what is visible from our planet. But the other side of the moon has different terrain, with fewer of the big dark basalt plains known as maria. Instead, craters of all sizes cover the entire area. In 1959, the Soviet Luna 3 probe sent back the first grainy images of the moon’s dark side. Fifty years later, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) was launched and, since 2009, has been relaying hundreds of terabytes of data, allowing scientists to create detailed maps of the moon’s surface. For the first time, these animations, created by NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio, allow people on Earth to see a completely different side of our nearest heavenly neighbor. \[[NASA\]](http://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/details.cgi?aid=4253) ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] We know how the moon looks from here on Earth. But what does it look like from the other side? Well, for one thing, you can also see the Earth. The spinning Earth looms large in this time- lapsed, telescopic view, made possible by computer graphics. We're looking along the imaginary line connecting the Earth and the Moon. From this vantage point, the Moon will be full soon, but on Earth, it's a waning crescent. The far side of the moon has fewer of the smooth, dark spots called Maria that cover the side that faces earth. Instead, the far side is covered with craters of all sizes. In the second perspective, we're much closer to the moon. Using a wide angle lens that makes the distant earth seem smaller [ MUSIC ] With our view fixed on the moon the rest of the solar system seems to dance and whirl around us. Before the space age no one knew what was on the other side of the moon. Since 2009, the lunar reconnaissance orbiter has been making some of the most detailed global maps of the moon's surface, making it much easier for everyone to see what it's like on the other side. 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