But why do we only see this one side of the moon We know that earth spins about its axis, so why don’t we get to see the full lunar surface as our moon does the same? The reason for this similarity is simple We almost always see the same surface when we stare at the moon, the same patterns of craters and cavities, thanks to the way that the moon moves, rotating and revolving around earth So, what about the other surface of our only natural satellite? All of the manned space missions to the moon have landed on the nearside due to communication needs, so humans have physically explored this side much more.
The simple answer (and one that you’ve probably heard before) is that we only see one side of the moon because the moon rotates around the earth at the exact same speed as it rotates around its own axis, so that the same side of the moon is constantly facing the surface of the earth. Over billions of years, the earth’s gravity has forced the moon to spin synchronously with its orbit However, things are a bit more complicated than that Viewed from earth, the moon appears to rock slowly backwards and forwards so that we see a slightly different face throughout the lunar month There are two main reasons for this. In the video below, you can see and gain a better understanding of how the moon’s same orbital speed and rotational speed match because of the tidal locking
This is why we see only one side of the moon. At the time of the full moon, the sun is shining full on the face we always see And at new moon, the moon is on the opposite side of its orbit from when it was full
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