NASA's EPIC Camera Captures Moon's Stunning Illuminated 'Dark' Side
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — NASA has provided an exquisite view of the moon that will never be perceived from Earth.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR) captured a series of photos from approximately one million miles out into space, showing the moon's illuminated "dark" side as it passes in front of the Earth.
The view was captured in July by NASA's Earth Polychromatic Imaging Camera (EPIC) on board the satellite, which was installed on the observatory to capture images of our planet's sunlit side from ultraviolet to infrared channels.
DSCOVR is a true representation of the efforts of multiple American agencies and companies involved in space operations, being co-operated by NASA and NOAA, partnered by the U.S. Air Force, and having been launched by Hawthorne-based SpaceX.
Objectives of DSCOVR's mission included providing weather forecasters with more efficient predictions.
The spacecraft was launched from Air Force Station Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) in Cape Canaveral, Florida, atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 launch vehicle.
At one million miles out, DSCOVR maintains a heliocentric orbit, giving it a constant viewpoint of the planet. It delivered its first images of the entire sunlit side of the Earth on July 6.