People Think This Moon Photo Looks Like Mario Twerking and They Can’t Unsee It

A 'Super Mario' statue is seen inside a Nintendo store in Shibuya. Nintendo released 'Donkey Kong Bananza' on their new console Nintendo Switch 2 on July 17, 2025. (Stanislav Kogiku/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

By Jade Alexander and Just Ben

April 10, 2026 at 6:52 am EDT

A wild moon photo is blowing up online after people noticed something hilarious… it looks like Super Mario is on the Moon.

o mário treinou glúteos pic.twitter.com/fP3yni9d4H
— Nightcrawler 🇵🇸 (@NightcrawlerGab) April 7, 2026

The colorful image, often (incorrectly) linked to NASA’s Artemis II mission, was actually taken from Earth by photographer Ildar Ibatullin. He enhanced the colors to highlight the Moon’s mineral makeup, not to hide a Nintendo Easter egg.

What people are seeing is a classic case of pareidolia, where your brain finds familiar shapes in random patterns. In reality, the “Mario” shape is just lunar regions like Mare Tranquillitatis and Mare Serenitatis.

Still, once you see it… good luck unseeing it.

Jade Alexander

If you’re a native of South Florida, you know Jade from her many years on local radio as a Jock and on television as both an Entertainment Reporter and News Anchor. This Miami girl has hosted some pretty memorable shows, events, and parties in this town. She’s a hugger, the ultimate animal lover, and has never met a stranger.