--- description: Astronomer Phil Plait says 'The Simpsons' is set in the southern hemisphere based on the evidence of the skies depicted in the show. title: Could 'The Simpsons' Be Secretly Set in Australia? image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [Newsfeed](/tag/time-section-newsfeed/) ## Newsfeed Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Is _The Simpsons_ Actually Set in Australia? by [Helen Regan](/author/helen-regan/) ## Helen Regan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 23, 2015 4:30 AM CUT by [Helen Regan](/author/helen-regan/) ## Helen Regan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 23, 2015 4:30 AM CUT Hold everything. _The Simpsons_ may not set in the United States as we have all been led to [believe](http://www.slate.com/blogs/bad%5Fastronomy/2015/02/22/simpsons%5Fbetrayed%5Fby%5Fthe%5Fmoon.html?wpsrc=fol%5Ffb "undefined") — and _Simpsons_ fan, astronomer, and Slate’s Bad Astronomy blogger, Phil Plait has a pretty ingenious reason why. It all has to do with how the show’s creators draw the Moon. In the episode _The Musk Who Fell to Earth_, which aired on Jan. 25, SpaceX boss Elon Musk befriends Homer when he arrives in Springfield. In one scene Musk gazes up at the night sky where a crescent Moon is shining above. But Plait noticed something peculiar about the Moon – it was facing the wrong way for a town supposedly in the U.S.A. > [](https://twitter.com/BadAstronomer/status/569545699462770688) In the northern hemisphere, the tips of a waxing crescent moon point to the left, but in _The Simpsons_ episode they point to the right. The conclusion? _The Simpsons_ must be set in the southern hemisphere. Mind blown. \[[Slate](http://www.slate.com/blogs/bad%5Fastronomy/2015/02/22/simpsons%5Fbetrayed%5Fby%5Fthe%5Fmoon.html?wpsrc=fol%5Ffb "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3718178/simpsons-australia-moon/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3718178/simpsons-australia-moon/"},"headline":"Is The Simpsons Actually Set in Australia?","datePublished":"2015-02-23T04:30:01.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:17:05.448Z","description":"How's this for fan theory?","url":"https://time.com/3718178/simpsons-australia-moon/","keywords":["Newsfeed","Television","Science topic","Elon Musk","The Simpsons","SpaceX"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Helen Regan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/helen-regan/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3718178/simpsons-australia-moon/","name":"Is The Simpsons Actually Set in Australia?"}}]}] ```