The almost full moon rises at sunset above Jiayu Pass at the western end of the Great Chinese wall. The wall, now a world heritage, was the largest military structure ever built. The pink band is the belt of Venus, and under it there is the shadow of the earth. Credit: Jeff Da
Here is a fun list of facts on the moon. It’s not just for lovers, you know.
#1. The moon is not a star or planet, it is a satellite. In fact, it is the only natural satellite of the earth. (We distinguish the moon from the vehicles that we launch into the space by calling them artificial satellites.) So, planets (like the earth) orbit stars (like the sun) and satellites orbit the planets. Because we know the [capital-M] Moon so well, you will often hear astronomers call satellites who orbit other “moons” planets, but they write that word with a tiny “m”.
#2. The moon came from the earth. It was not formed next to our planet and the severity of the earth did not capture it. The last theory states that the moon formed about 4th billion years ago for debris exploded by the earth from the impact of a body of the size of Mars.
#3. The moon and the sun seem to have the same size. It works because the sun diameter is 400 times greater than that of the moon, but the sun is also 400 times further away.
#4. Here are two for the price of one: the moon takes 27.3 days to orbit Earth once, but 29.5 days to return from the new moon to the new moon. The reason why these two periods are different is because, at the same time that the moon is orbit the earth in orbit, the earth is orbit the sun. So, it takes 2.2 days more because the three objects are once again aligned with New Moon (or, really, from any phase that you choose to the next time the phase appears).
#5. The surface of the moon reflects only 12 percent of the light that falls on it. And you thought the full moon was bright!
#6. The moon always keeps the same face towards the earth. Because it does it, it must rotate (i.e. turn) once for each orbit it does. This could be the greatest misunderstanding on the moon. Many people think that, since the same face always indicates us, the moon does not revolve. It is false and it is easy to show how it works. Put a chair in the middle of a room. That chair will represent the earth and you will be the moon. Stay a few meters away from it and face it. Also note which wall in the room are facing. Subsequently, orbit in the middle of the chair, always keeping the front side towards it and stopped. A quick look at the room will show that you are now facing the opposite wall. Aha! Because this happens, you must have rotated half of half. Continue at your starting point and you will see it as you orbited in orbit once, you also rotated once. Quite beautiful, huh?
#7. The average distance of the moon from the earth is 238,000 miles (383,000 kilometers). It can be far from 252,724 miles (406,720 kilometers) or up to 221,439 miles (356,372 kilometers). Therefore, the moon can show a variation of 14 % between the two extremes. At its average distance and the average rhythm of a person, we would have wanted 9 years to walk towards the moon.
#8. The diameter of the moon is 2,159 miles (3,474 kilometers). Only four satellites in our Solar System are larger: Ganimede, Titan, Callisto and I.
#9. Here is one relating to the eclipses: the orbit of the moon inclines 5.14 ° with the terrestrial orbit around the sun. This is the reason why we do not have solar eclipses to every new and lunar eclipse on every full moon.
#10. Of the 9,113 official characteristics on the moon, only 421 are not craters. This is only 4.6 percent.
