this post was submitted on 22 Sep 2024
160 points (100.0% liked)

Space

8874 readers
12 users here now

Share & discuss informative content on: Astrophysics, Cosmology, Space Exploration, Planetary Science and Astrobiology.


Rules

  1. Be respectful and inclusive.
  2. No harassment, hate speech, or trolling.
  3. Engage in constructive discussions.
  4. Share relevant content.
  5. Follow guidelines and moderators' instructions.
  6. Use appropriate language and tone.
  7. Report violations.
  8. Foster a continuous learning environment.

Picture of the Day

The Busy Center of the Lagoon Nebula


Related Communities

๐Ÿ”ญ Science

๐Ÿš€ Engineering

๐ŸŒŒ Art and Photography


Other Cool Links

founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[โ€“] case_when 5 points 3 months ago

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.