Moon

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Moon

The Moon is the only natural satellite of Earth. It orbits Earth at an average distance of 384,399 kilometers (238,854 mi). Because the Moon follows an elliptical path, its distance from Earth varies over the year, ranging from 357,000–407,000 kilometers (222,000–253,000 mi), a distance roughly 30 times the width of Earth. It completes an orbit (lunar month) in relation to Earth and the Sun (synodically) every 29.5 days. The Moon and Earth are bound by gravitational attraction, which is stronger on the sides facing each other. The resulting tidal forces are the main driver of Earth's tides, and have pulled the Moon to always face Earth with the same near side. This tidal locking effectively synchronizes the Moon's rotation period (lunar day) to its orbital period (lunar month). In geophysical terms, the Moon is a planetary-mass object or satellite planet. Its mass is 1.2% that of the Earth, and its diameter is 3,474 km (2,159 mi), roughly one-quarter of Earth's (about as wide as the contiguous United States). Within the Solar System, it is larger and more massive than any known dwarf planet, and the fifth-largest and fifth–most massive moon, as well as the largest and most massive in relation to its parent planet. Its surface gravity is about one-sixth of Earth's, about half that of Mars, and the second-highest among all moons in the Solar System after Jupiter's moon Io. The body of the Moon is differentiated and terrestrial, with only a minuscule hydrosphere, atmosphere, and magnetic field. The lunar surface is covered in regolith dust, which mainly consists of the fine material ejected from the lunar crust by impact events. The lunar crust is marked by impact craters; some younger ones feature bright ray-like streaks. The Moon was volcanically active until 1.2 billion years ago, surfacing lava mostly on the thinner near side of the Moon, filling ancient craters, which through cooling formed the today prominently visible dark plains of basalt called maria ('seas'). The origin of the Moon is not clear, although it is thought to have been formed out of material from Earth that was ejected by a giant impact of a Mars-sized body 4.51 billion years ago, not long after Earth's formation. From a distance, the day and night phases of the lunar day are visible as the lunar phases, and when the Moon passes through Earth's shadow a lunar eclipse is observable. The Moon's apparent size in Earth's sky is about the same as that of the Sun, which causes it to cover the Sun completely during a total solar eclipse. The Moon is the brightest celestial object in Earth's night sky because of its large apparent size, while the reflectance (albedo) of its surface is comparable to that of asphalt. About 59% of the surface of the Moon is visible from Earth owing to the different angles at which the Moon can appear in Earth's sky (libration), making parts of the far side of the Moon visible. The Moon has been an important source of inspiration and knowledge in human history, having been crucial to cosmography, mythology, religion, art, time keeping, natural science and spaceflight. The first spaceflights to an extraterrestrial body were to the Moon, starting in 1959 with the flyby of Luna 1 (sent by the Soviet Union), and the intentional impact of Luna 2, followed in 1966 by the first soft landing (by Luna 9) and orbital insertion (by Luna 10). Humans first arrived in orbit with Apollo 8 (sent by the United States) on December 24, 1968, and then on the surface with Apollo 11 on July 20, 1969, making the Moon the only celestial body beyond Earth that humans have visited. By 1972, six Apollo missions had landed twelve people on the Moon and stayed up to three days. Renewed robotic exploration of the Moon, in particular to confirm the presence of water on the Moon, has fueled plans to return humans to the Moon. These plans include the Artemis program, which included the Artemis II crewed lunar flyby in 2026.

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• Moon | Features, Phases, Surface, Exploration, & Facts | Britannica

  The Moon is a spherical rocky body, probably with a small metallic core, revolving around Earth in a slightly eccentric orbit at a mean distance of about 384,000 km (238,600 miles). Its equatorial radius is 1,738 km (1,080 miles), and its shape is slightly flattened in such a way that it bulges a little in the direction of Earth. Its mass distribution is not uniform—the center of mass is displaced about 2 km (1.2 miles) toward Earth relative to the center of the lunar sphere, and it also has surface mass concentrations, called mascons for short, that cause the Moon’s gravitational field to increase over local areas. The Moon has no global magnetic field like that of Earth, but some of its surface rocks have remanent magnetism, which indicates one or more periods of magnetic activity in [...] Centuries of observation and scientific investigation have been centered on the nature and origin of the Moon. Early studies of the Moon’s motion and position allowed the prediction of tides and led to the development of calendars. The Moon was the first new world on which humans set foot; the information brought back from those expeditions, together with that collected by automated spacecraft and remote-sensing observations, has led to a knowledge of the Moon that surpasses that of any other cosmic body except Earth itself. Although many questions remain about its composition, structure, and history, it has become clear that the Moon holds keys to understanding the origin of Earth and the solar system. Moreover, given its nearness to Earth, its rich potential as a source of materials and [...] • Aug. 25, 2026, 5:36 AM ET (scitechdaily.com) Trump to award Congressional Space Medal of Honor to Artemis II astronauts • Aug. 24, 2026, 9:48 AM ET (Science Daily) Due to need for "absolute success," China delays critical Moon launch to 2027 • Aug. 23, 2026, 10:30 AM ET (Ars Technica) Moon, Earth’s sole natural satellite and nearest large celestial body. Known since prehistoric times, it is the brightest object in the sky after the Sun. It is designated by the symbol ☽. Its name in English, like that of Earth, is of Germanic and Old English derivation. Did You Know? NASA announced it was planning to build a nuclear reactor on the Moon by 2030.

• Moon

  "), having a considerable atmosphere. The Moon is the fifth largest (by size and mass) natural satellite of the Solar System. It is categorizable as a planetary-mass moon, making it a satellite planet under the geophysical definitions of the term. It is smaller than Mercury "Mercury (planet)") but considerably larger than the largest dwarf planet of the Solar System, Pluto. The Moon is the second-densest satellite in the Solar System, after Io "Io (moon)"). [...] From a distance, the day and night phases of the lunar day are visible as the lunar phases, and when the Moon passes through Earth's shadow a lunar eclipse is observable. The Moon's apparent size in Earth's sky is about the same as that of the Sun, which causes it to cover the Sun completely during a total solar eclipse. The Moon is the brightest celestial object in Earth's night sky because of its large apparent size, while the reflectance (albedo) of its surface is comparable to that of asphalt. About 59% of the surface of the Moon is visible from Earth owing to the different angles at which the Moon can appear in Earth's sky (libration), making parts of the far side of the Moon visible. [...] Isotope dating of lunar samples suggests the Moon formed around 50 million years after the origin of the Solar System. Historically, several formation mechanisms have been proposed, but none satisfactorily explains the features of the Earth–Moon system. A fission of the Moon from Earth's crust through centrifugal force would require too great an initial rotation rate of Earth. Gravitational capture of a pre-formed Moon depends on an unfeasibly extended atmosphere of Earth to dissipate the energy of the passing Moon. A co-formation of Earth and the Moon together in the primordial accretion disk does not explain the depletion of metals in the Moon. None of these hypotheses can account for the high angular momentum of the Earth–Moon system.

• Moon Facts 🌘 - Interesting Facts about the Earth's Moon

  The Moon is the fifth largest natural satellite in the Solar System. At 3,475 km in diameter, the Moon is much smaller than the major moons of Jupiter and

• Moon Facts

  ### Structure Earth's Moon has a core, mantle, and crust. The Moon’s core is proportionally smaller than other terrestrial bodies' cores. The solid, iron-rich inner core is 149 miles (240 kilometers) in radius. It is surrounded by a liquid iron shell 56 miles (90 kilometers) thick. A partially molten layer surrounds the iron core. The mantle extends from the top of the partially molten layer to the bottom of the Moon's crust. It is most likely made of minerals like olivine and pyroxene, which are made up of magnesium, iron, silicon, and oxygen atoms. [...] ### Size and Distance With a radius of about 1,080 miles (1,740 kilometers), the Moon is less than a third of the width of Earth. If Earth were the size of a nickel, the Moon would be about as big as a coffee bean. The Moon is an average of 238,855 miles (384,400 kilometers) away. That means 30 Earth-sized planets could fit in between Earth and the Moon. The Moon is slowly moving away from Earth, getting about an inch farther away each year. NASA/Moore Boeck ### Orbit and Rotation The Moon is rotating at the same rate that it revolves around Earth (called synchronous rotation), so the same hemisphere faces Earth all the time. Some people call the far side – the hemisphere we never see from Earth – the "dark side", but that's misleading. [...] article 7 months ago # Moon Facts Earth's Moon records evidence of our solar system's history in the form of impact craters, cooled lava landforms, ancient ice deposits, and more. ### 10 things If you set a single green pea next to a U.S. nickel, you'd have a pretty good idea of the size of the Moon compared to Earth. The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It goes around the Earth at a distance of about 239,000 miles (385,000 kilometers). The Earth and Moon are tidally locked. Their rotations are so in sync we only see one side of the Moon. Humans didn't see the lunar far side until a Soviet spacecraft flew past in 1959. The Moon has a solid, rocky surface cratered and pitted from impacts by asteroids, meteorites, and comets.

• Facts about the Moon! - National Geographic Kids

  ## 10 facts about the Moon 1) The Moon is a dusty ball of rock, measuring 3,476km in diameter – that’s roughly a quarter of the size of Earth. 2) Its surface is home to mountains, huge craters and flat planes called ‘seas’ made of hardened lava. ### Check out our magazine! National Geographic Kids is an exciting monthly read for planet-passionate boys and girls, aged 6-13! Packed full of fun features, jaw-dropping facts and awe-inspiring photos – it’ll keep you entertained for hours! Find our magazine in all good newsagents, or become a subscriber and have it delivered to your door! Ask your parents to check out the ‘Subscribe’ tab on our website! ###### (AD) [...] ###### (AD) 3) The Moon is Earth’s only natural satellite – a celestial body that orbits a planet. Its orbit around our planet is shaped like a slightly squashed circle known as an ellipse.Facts about the moon - image 2 4) It takes 27.3 days for the Moon to travel all the way around the Earth and complete its orbit. 5) Although the Moon shines bright in the night sky, it doesn’t produce its own light. We see the Moon because it reflects light from the Sun. 6) Ever noticed how the Moon appears to change shape each night? That’s because as the Moon orbits the Earth, the Sun lights up different parts of its surface – so it’s just our view of the Moon that’s changing, not the Moon itself. Find out more in our fascinating phases of the Moon feature!Facts about the moon - image 1

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