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---
title: 'The Simpsons' Could Be Secretly Be Set in Australia
description: Astronomer Phil Plait says 'The Simpsons' is set in the southern hemisphere based on the evidence of the skies depicted in the show.
canonical: https://time.com/3718178/simpsons-australia-moon/
author: Helen Regan
article:opinion: false
article:content_tier: free
article:published_time: 2015-02-23T04:30:01.000Z
article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:17:05.448Z
og:title: Could 'The Simpsons' Be Secretly Set in Australia?
og:description: Mind-blowing astronomical theory says yes
og:url: https://time.com/3718178/simpsons-australia-moon/
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twitter:title: Could 'The Simpsons' Be Secretly Set in Australia?
twitter:description: Mind-blowing astronomical theory says yes
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# Is _The Simpsons_ Actually Set in Australia?

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by 

[Helen Regan](https://time.com/author/helen-regan/)


## Helen Regan


Feb 23, 2015 4:30 AM UTC

by 

[Helen Regan](https://time.com/author/helen-regan/)


## Helen Regan


Feb 23, 2015 4:30 AM UTC

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) — 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.

\[[Slate](http://www.slate.com/blogs/bad%5Fastronomy/2015/02/22/simpsons%5Fbetrayed%5Fby%5Fthe%5Fmoon.html?wpsrc=fol%5Ffb)\]

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