I’ve got lots of fun activities and facts about the Moon to share today. The Moon is probably more important to the Earth than you think. Did you know it stabilises the wobble of the Earth on its axis giving us a fairly stable climate and causes tides.
Moon Facts
Did you know the Moon is slowly drifting away from the Earth? It moves around 3.5 cm further away each year!
The Moon is the Earth’s only natural satellite and the fifth largest Moon in the Solar System.
We only see one side of the Moon from Earth, this is because it rotates in exactly the same time it takes to orbit Earth, so we always see the same face. This phenomenon is known as tidal locking.
Did you know if you were to fly from the Moon to the Sun it would take about 20 years??
Why do the sun and moon look to be the same size?
The Sun and Moon look to be a similar size from Earth, but we know the Sun is much bigger. The reason they look to be a similar size is because the Moon is about 400 times smaller than the Sun, but the Sun is 400 times further away from earth than the Moon.
How is the Moon different to the Earth?
The surface of the Moon is dry and lifeless. There’s no water and very little atmosphere.
As the Earth moves around the sun it also rotates on its axis. The Moon actually helps Earth not wobble too much because of its gravitational pull.
Without the moon the tilt of the Earth’s axis would vary and the climate be much more unstable.
Does the moon impact tides?
Tides on Earth are mostly caused by the pull of the Moon’s gravity.
How hot is the Moon?
It depends which side you’re on. On the side of the Moon that where the Sun is shining temperatures can reach about 100 degrees Celsius!! This is because the Moon has no atmosphere to shield it from the sun’s rays.
How cold is the moon?
On the dark side of the Moon where the sun can’t reach, temperatures drop as low as – 173 degrees celsius.
Are there really footprints on the moon?
There is no wind on the Moon so nothing to move anything on the surface. The footprints left by astronauts who landed on the moon are still there today.
Why does the moon look different on different days?
As the Moon orbits the Earth different parts of it are lit by the sun, which is why it seems to change shape. We call the different shapes phases of the moon. The Moon itself doesn’t emit any light, what you actually see is sunlight reflected off the Moon.
A Full Moon is when you can see the whole of the moon and a New Moon is when you can’t see any of the moon.
How long does the Moon take to orbit the Earth?
The Moon takes 27.32 days to orbit the Earth and in that time we see all the phases of the moon. New Moon to New Moon is 29.5 days.
Who was the first person to walk on the moon?
Neil Armstrong was the first person to walk on the moon in 1969!
How was the Moon formed?
Scientists think that the Moon was formed when a huge ( possibly Mars sized ) object collided with the Earth. Another theory is that the Moon was an asteroid captured by the Earth’s gravity.
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