Moon Globe 2.3

Moon Globe is an app designed with one sole purpose: to teach people all there is to know about Earth’s natural satellite, the Moon. It’s based on a 3D model that puts the Moon front and center, but also shows how it rotates around the Earth and, along with us, around the Sun.

Unlike Mars Globe, Midnight Martian’s other astronomy app, Moon Globe actually puts things into context. You get to glance at the Moon as it spins around the Earth. The Sun becomes visible too when you set the Moon to face it.

The Moon, in your hands

This app literally puts the Moon in your hands. You can spin it in any direction and get as close as 300 KM above its surface to inspect its topography, and select any annotation from the tag cloud to learn about terrain, manned missions, and more.

Thanks to the dynamic sky compass - something that Mars Globe should also feature - Moon Globe shows you where the Moon and Sun are in the sky at any given time. The paid Moon Globe HD has twice the map resolution and better rendering.

Instrumental in class

I’ve finished school some time ago, but I don’t remember any teacher using anything even remotely similar to teach us about the Moon and how it behaves, how the Sun lights it up, what the craters look like up close, its composition, etc.

Moon Globe would make an amazing classroom utility, as it enables people to study Earth’s natural satellite up close with an unprecedented amount of precision. The sheer amount of information about the Moon is enough to fill a whole semester.

HD version, iPad build

There’s an HD version for both iPhone and iPad that sells for a meagre $0.99 and has somewhat better rendering and a bigger map resolution. It’s otherwise the same app, and it’s worth every cent.

I highly recommend both Moon Globe and Mars Globe (the developer’s other astronomy app that focuses on the red planet) to any parent who wants to give their kid a “bigger picture.”

The iPad build has a bunch of extras that are worth checking out. I can’t understand why these extra perks aren’t found in the iPhone version, but I guess there’s a reason for that.

Add to watchlist:

ReferenceAstronomy

• NeuroNation 1.4.22
• Clarify 1.4.1
• Goodreads – Book Recommendations and Reviews for great Books and eBooks 3.1.4
• Wikiwand 0.8
• Star Chart 3.95
• Wikimedia Foundation 4.0.6