A spacecraft from the ESCAPADE mission photographed Earth and the Moon together in visible light and thermal infrared. The two views show a clear difference between the two bodies.
Earth's atmosphere and oceans retain more heat, while the lunar surface cools much more strongly.
These images from NASA's ESCAPADE mission show Earth (left) and the Moon (right).
The image on the left shows the visible sunlight reflected by Earth and the Moon, while the infrared image on the right reveals the energy emitted by these celestial bodies. White rings have been added to the thermal image to indicate the actual size of Earth and the Moon.
Credit: NASA/UCB-SSL/NAU-Radiant/Lucint
The images were taken on July 3, 2026, while the spacecraft was 584,600 km from Earth. It was also 186,100 km from the Moon. This geometry makes our natural satellite appear relatively large in the camera's field of view.
The Sun directly illuminated only about 8% of the visible face of both bodies. In the visible-light image, Earth and the Moon therefore appear as thin crescents. This view relies on sunlight reflected by their surfaces and by Earth's atmosphere.
The thermal image, by contrast, measures the energy emitted as infrared radiation. The night side of Earth remains visible thanks to its own heat. Its apparent temperature ranges between 250 K and 280 K, or about -23 °C to +7 °C depending on the regions observed.
The dimly lit face of the Moon drops to nearly 100 K, or about -173 °C. Our satellite has neither oceans nor a dense atmosphere to store and redistribute energy. Its surface therefore loses heat rapidly when it passes into shadow.
The images were obtained with the VIOS cameras, for Visible and Infrared Observation System. These instruments were provided by Northern Arizona University. Photographing Earth and the Moon, whose properties are already well known, makes it possible to verify their operation before arrival at Mars.
ESCAPADE consists of two spacecraft designed to study the interaction between the solar wind and the Martian environment. They are scheduled to reach Mars in September 2027 after an Earth gravity assist planned for November 2026. Their cameras will notably search for visible auroras and measure the thermal properties of the Martian surface and atmosphere.