Since ancient times, when people looked at the moon, they thought they viewed some kind of image on its surface. In European cultures, handed down to America, we had always viewed this image as a face, dubbing it The Man in the Moon. However, in Japanese history (and also China and other Asian countries), they don't see a face. They see a rabbit. Since living here and looking at the moon, I see it, too. It always looks two ears flopped over a crouching body fit into a circle.
I once read somewhere that claimed part of the difference of opinion was because the angle of moon when viewed in Japan was different when viewed in America. In Japan, the moon was rotated counter-clockwise which put the rabbit's ears up a bit higher, making the rabbit more distinguishable. This seemed like nonsense because Japan and America are on the same latitude. The moon doesn't spin that way.
One night while in America visiting family, there was a beautiful clear night. A few clouds, but the moon is full and illuminated the darkness. I wanted to photograph proof of this difference.
Here's the American moon shot in August 2025.
And here's the Japanese moon shot in November 2016.
It is rotated by quite a bit!
But... this rotation could be because of a lot of things. This is August versus November.
Here's another photo of the Japanese moon from September 2014.
It's rotated even more!
Perhaps it's not the difference in time of the year, but the time of night? The September shots were from dusk. However, the 2016 and 2025 shots were both taken around 10pm at night.
Is the moon really rotated slightly on the other side of Earth even though it's the same hemisphere?
This rotation clearly makes it easier to notice a Rabbit in the Moon compared to a Man in the Moon.
