The Moon


 

THE  MOON

The Moon (or Luna) is the Earth’s only natural satellite and was formed 4.6 billion years ago around some 30–50 million years after the formation of the solar system. The Moon is in synchronous rotation with Earth meaning the same side is always facing the Earth. The first uncrewed mission to the Moon was in 1959 by the Soviet Lunar Program with the first crewed landing being Apollo 11 in 1969.

Moon Profile

Diameter:3,475 km
Mass:7.35 × 10^22 kg (0.01 Earths)
Orbits:The Earth
Orbit Distance:384,400 km
Orbit Period:27.3 days
Surface Temperature:-233 to 123 °C

Size of the Moon Compared to the Earth

Moon size compared to the Earth
Moon size compared to the Earth

Facts about the Moon

  • The dark side of the moon is a myth.
    In reality both sides of the Moon see the same amount of sunlight however only one face of the Moon is ever seen from Earth. This is because the Moon rotates around on its own axis in exactly the same time it takes to orbit the Earth, meaning the same side is always facing the Earth. The side facing away from Earth has only been seen by the human eye from spacecraft.
  • The rise and fall of the tides on Earth is caused by the Moon.
    There are two bulges in the Earth due to the gravitational pull that the Moon exerts; one on the side facing the Moon, and the other on the opposite side that faces away from the Moon, The bulges move around the oceans as the Earth rotates, causing high and low tides around the globe.
  • The Moon is drifting away from the Earth.
    The Moon is moving approximately 3.8 cm away from our planet every year. It is estimated that it will continue to do so for around 50 billion years. By the time that happens, the Moon will be taking around 47 days to orbit the Earth instead of the current 27.3 days.
  • A person would weigh much less on the Moon.
    The Moon has much weaker gravity than Earth, due to its smaller mass, so you would weigh about one sixth (16.5%) of your weight on Earth. This is why the lunar astronauts could leap and bound so high in the air.
   Regards VIVEK TOMAR

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