The Moon’s hidden southwest corner


A jagged, heavily cratered lunar landscape curves along the horizon, lit at a low, raking angle so every crater rim and ridge casts a long, sharp shadow. Countless overlapping craters of all sizes cover the gray surface, fading into darkness where the Moon's curve meets black sky.

Damian Peach from Hampshire, U.K.

Favorable libration briefly tilts the Moon’s southwestern limb into view in this image, exposing three heavily foreshortened craters: Bailly (center left) at roughly 180 miles (300 kilometers) across; the well-preserved Hausen (upper left); and 149-kilometer Drygalski (upper right), so close to the limb it is normally hidden entirely, and lies close to the permanently shadowed regions of the lunar south pole.