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The Moon's heavily cratered far-side. The origin of the Moon is usually explained by a Mars-sized body striking the Earth, creating a debris ring that eventually collected into a single natural satellite, the Moon, but there are a number of variations on this giant-impact hypothesis, as well as alternative explanations, and research continues into how the Moon came to be formed.
Artist's depiction of a collision between two planetary bodies. Such an impact between Earth and a Mars-sized object likely formed the Moon.. The giant-impact hypothesis, sometimes called the Theia Impact, is an astrogeology hypothesis for the formation of the Moon first proposed in 1946 by Canadian geologist Reginald Daly.
Lunar nearside with major maria and craters labeled Earthshine reflecting off the Moon. The bright region at left is directly illuminated by sunlight, while the rest of the Moon is faintly lit by sunlight reflected off the Earth. Generally, the Moon can be viewed even with the naked eye, however it may be more enjoyable with optical instruments.
The orbits of the Moon and planets are integrated numerically along with the orientation of the Moon called physical libration. [ 23 ] At the Moon's surface, the beam is about 6.5 kilometers (4.0 mi) wide [ 24 ] [ i ] and scientists liken the task of aiming the beam to using a rifle to hit a moving dime 3 kilometers (1.9 mi) away.
The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It orbits at an average distance of 384,400 km (238,900 mi), about 30 times the diameter of Earth. Tidal forces between Earth and the Moon have synchronized the Moon's orbital period (lunar month) with its rotation period at 29.5 Earth days, causing the same side of the Moon to always face Earth.
The Moon has been observed for millennia. Over these ages, various levels of care and precision have been possible, according to the techniques of observation available at any time. There is a correspondingly long history of lunar theories: it stretches from the times of the Babylonian and Greek astronomers, down to modern lunar laser ranging.
“If you were going to the moon, you’d expect the journey to be uncomfortable but it’d be worth it,” she says. “You just have to think, ‘This is what I need to get from one world to ...
The night side of the moon, illuminated by earthshine, becomes visible next to the narrow crescent (11 percent, age of the moon = 3.3 days) with ash-grey moonlight. Image taken 20° over the western evening sky shortly after the equinox in spring with a particularly steep ecliptic as seen from Berlin.