Moon

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article is about Earth's natural satellite. For moons in general, see natural satellite. For other
uses, see Moon (disambiguation).

Moon

Full moon as seen from North America in Earth's Northern Hemisphere

Designations

Lunar
Adjectives
selenic

Orbital characteristics

Perigee 362600 km
(356400–370400 km)

Apogee 405400 km

(404000–406700 km)

Semi-major axis 384399 km (0.00257 AU)[1]

Eccentricity 0.0549[1]

Orbital period 27.321661 d

(27 d 7 h 43 min 11.5 s[1])

Synodic period 29.530589 d

(29 d 12 h 44 min 2.9 s)

Average orbital speed 1.022 km/s

Inclination 5.145° to the ecliptic[2][a]

Longitude of Regressing by one revolution in

ascending node 18.61 years

Argument of perigee Progressing by one revolution in

 8.85 years

Satellite of Earth[b][3]

Physical characteristics

Mean radius 1737.1 km (0.273 of Earth's)[1][4][5]

Equatorialradius 1738.1 km (0.273 of Earth's)[4]

Polar radius 1736.0 km (0.273 of Earth's)[4]

Flattening 0.0012[4]

Circumference 10921 km (equatorial)

Surface area 3.793×107 km2 (0.074 of Earth's)

Volume 2.1958×1010 km3 (0.020 of Earth's)[4]

Mass 7.342×1022 kg (0.012300 of Earth's)[1][4]

Mean density 3.344 g/cm3[1][4]

0.606 × Earth

Surface gravity 1.62 m/s2 (0.1654 g)[4]

Moment of inertia factor 0.3929±0.0009[6]

Escape velocity 2.38 km/s

Sidereal rotation period 27.321661 d (synchronous)

Equatorial rotation velocity 4.627 m/s

Axial tilt
1.5424° to ecliptic

6.687° to orbit plane[2]

Albedo 0.136[7]

Surface temp. min mean max

Equator 100 K 220 K 390 K

85°N 150 K 230 K[8]

Apparent magnitude
−2.5 to −12.9[c]

−12.74 (mean full moon)[4]

Angular diameter 29.3 to 34.1 arcminutes[4][d]

Atmosphere[9]
 Surface pressure
10−7 Pa (1 picobar) (day)

10−10 Pa (1 femtobar) (night)[e]

Composition by volume He

Ar

Ne

Na

Rn

The Moon is an astronomical body that orbits planet Earth, being Earth's only permanent natural
satellite. It is the fifth-largestnatural satellite in the Solar System, and the largest among planetary
satellites relative to the size of the planet that it orbits (its primary). Following Jupiter's satellite Io,
the Moon is the second-densest satellite in the Solar System among those whose densities are
known.
The Moon is thought to have formed about 4.51 billion years ago, not long after Earth. The most
widely accepted explanation is that the Moon formed from the debris left over after a giant
impact between Earth and a Mars-sized body called Theia.
The Moon is in synchronous rotation with Earth, always showing the same face, with its near
side marked by dark volcanic maria that fill the spaces between the bright ancient crustal
highlands and the prominent impact craters. As seen from the Earth, it is the second-brightest
regularly visible celestial object in Earth's sky, after the Sun. Its surface is actually dark, although
compared to the night sky it appears very bright, with a reflectance just slightly higher than that of
worn asphalt. Its gravitational influence produces the ocean tides, body tides, and the slight
lengthening of the day.
The Moon's average orbital distance at the present time is 384,402 km (238,856 mi),[10][11] or 1.28
light-seconds. This is about thirty times the diameter of Earth, with its apparent size in the sky
almost the same as that of the Sun (due to it being 400x farther and larger), resulting in the Moon
covering the Sun nearly precisely in total solar eclipse. This matching of apparent visual size will
not continue in the far future, because the Moon's distance from Earth is slowly increasing.
The Soviet Union's Luna program was the first to reach the Moon with unmanned spacecraft in
1959; the United States' NASA Apollo program achieved the only manned missions to date,
beginning with the first manned lunar orbiting mission by Apollo 8 in 1968, and six manned lunar
landings between 1969 and 1972, with the first being Apollo 11. These missions returned lunar
rocks which have been used to develop a geological understanding of the Moon's origin, internal
structure, and later history. Since the Apollo 17 mission in 1972, the Moon has been visited only
by unmanned spacecraft.
Within human culture, both the Moon's natural prominence in the earthly sky, and its regular
cycle of phases as seen from the Earth have provided cultural references and influences for
human societies and cultures since time immemorial. Such cultural influences can be found
in language, lunar based calendar systems, art, and mythology.