Superflip facts for kids

The Superflip is a special way a Rubik's Cube can look. Imagine your cube is perfectly solved. In the Superflip position, all the little pieces (called "cubies") are in their correct spots. The eight corner pieces are also turned the right way. But here's the trick: all twelve of the edge pieces are turned the wrong way, or "flipped"!

This position is very famous in the world of Rubik's Cubes. It's known as one of the hardest positions to reach from a solved cube, or to solve back to a perfect cube.

How Many Moves?

When people talk about solving a Rubik's Cube, they often count "moves." There are different ways to count:

Half-Turn Moves

One way to count is called the "half-turn metric" (HTM). In this method, turning a face 90 degrees (a quarter turn) counts as one move. Turning a face 180 degrees (a half turn) also counts as just one move.

Using this way of counting, it takes exactly 20 moves to go from a solved Rubik's Cube to the Superflip position. It's also one of the positions that needs the most moves to solve!

Quarter-Turn Moves

Another way to count is the "quarter-turn metric" (QTM). Here, only 90-degree turns count as one move. So, a 180-degree turn counts as two moves.

If you count this way, the Superflip needs 24 moves. It's still a lot, but it's not the absolute hardest position to reach or solve using this method.

Solving the Superflip

To get to the Superflip position from a solved cube, or to solve it back, you need a specific sequence of turns. These turns are written using something called Singmaster notation, which is a special code for cube moves.

Here is one of the easiest ways to learn and do the Superflip sequence:

U M' U M' U M' U M' x' y U M' U M' U M' U M' x' y U M' U M' U M' U M'

• U means turn the Up face clockwise.
• M means turn the Middle slice (between the Left and Right faces) upwards.
• M' means turn the Middle slice downwards.
• x means rotate the whole cube on the X-axis (like turning the Front face).
• y means rotate the whole cube on the Y-axis (like turning the Up face).

This sequence might look long, but it's made of repeating parts, which makes it easier to remember and perform quickly!