Moon facts interesting facts about the earths moon. The moon has been earths constant companion for most of its history, even though the mechanism of its formation is still the subject of some debate in astronomical circles. Here are 10 cool, and sometimes surprising, facts about earths nearest neighbor. Of the 16 moons it is the 4th closest to jupiter, with a standoff distance of 221,900 km. Jupiter and its moons, largely from the nasa mission named after him. In 1983, it was officially named after the mythological nymph thebe. A vertical stack of three evenly spaced horizontal lines. Find all the books, read about the author, and more. Leda is the ninth moon from jupiter and is also the smallest moon with a mean diameter of 16 km 9. The moons surface is about the same now as it was 3 billion years ago.
The orbit of thebe has an orbital eccentricity of 0. Synnott in images from the voyager 1 space probe taken on march 5, 1979 and was given the designation s1979 j 2. Thebe or jupiter xiv, is the fourth of jupiters known moons by distance from the planet. Without an atmosphere, there is no wind or water erosion. As the moon spins exactly once during each orbit of earth, the same side, the near side, is always. It was first observed in 1979 by the voyager 1 space probe and thoroughly investigated in the 1990s by the galileo orbiter. At a distance of 384,400 km from the earth, the moon is our closest celestial neighbour and only natural satellite. Moon facts there are many interesting facts about the moon and trivia that are can be interesting to know.
It was discovered in 1979 in images taken by voyager 1, and was named in 1983 after the first wife of zeus, metis. Thebe is a unique entrepreneurial company that does not exist only to make a profit, but is driven by a commitment to serve the broader interests of communities at large. The astronauts footprints remain unchanged on the moons surface, and will until the moon is struck by an asteroid. Fascinating facts about the magnificent mysterious moon paperback august 1, 1998. Adrastea was discovered in july 1979 by the voyager science team. On average, the moon is 238,750 miles 384,400 km from earth, or about 30 earth widths away. The moon is around a quarter the size of earth with a diameter of 2158 miles 3474 km. On pages 5 and 6, youll find a brief description of nasa and two of its moon missions. The full moon is a lunar phase occurring when the moon is on the opposite side of the earth from the sun and all three bodies are aligned in a straight line. Earth, sun, and moon facts worksheet by paula jett tpt. It has also been observed by the hubble space telescope and from earth for. Because of this fact, we have been able to gain more knowledge about it than any other body in the solar system besides the earth. The sun is 865,000 miles in diameter about 109 times the diameter of the earth 3.
Students cut out facts about the earth, sun, and moon, and paste them in. At a distance of about 8 thousand miles 222 thousand kilometers from jupiter, thebe whips once around the planet in a little over 16 hours. Night sky observer thomas cooper snapped this amazing view of the moon and its craters on aug. One of the most interesting things about earth apart from the fact that its so far the only planet known to harbor life on its surface is its sole natural satellite the moon. Exploring the moon a teachers guide with activities, nasa eg199710116hq 99 the activities in this unit spark interest in responsible land use and sustainable human settlements on the moon. Facts about the moon the moon for kids dk find out. Get your kids excited about whats involved in living and working on the moon. A liquid ocean may lie beneath the frozen crust of europa, and. Founded in 1992 as a pioneering blackowned company, thebe investment corporation is one of south africas leading investment companies, managing assets of over r6 billion. From earth, we always see the same face of the moon because the moon is spinning on its axis at the same speed that it is going around earth that is, it is in synchronous rotation with earth. The moon is earths nearest cosmic neighbor, but it is more than just a big pretty light in the sky. Join us as we head into the universe to discover ten fascinating facts about the moon 10 facts about the moon. Here are 10 surprising facts about the moon, including information about the phases, brightness, temperature and more of earths natural satellite.
The moon appears bright in the night sky because it reflects light from the sun. September, 2015 peter christoforou astronomy lists, solar system 0. It also demonstrates that the makers of the moon absolutely intended humanity to know the truth at this point in our history. Only 59% of the moons surface is visible from earth. It is named for the queen of sparta and the mother of pollux and helen of troy the father was zeus.
In 1983 it was officially named after the mythological nymph thebe who was the daughter of the river. In reality both sides of the moon see the same amount of sunlight however only one face of the moon is ever seen from earth. The earth has one moon, named the moon, and it hangs in the sky every night and can sometimes be seen even during the day. It was the third ring system to be discovered in the solar system, after those of saturn and uranus. The moon is not a planet, but a satellite of the earth. Thebe rotates by approximately 50 degrees between the time these two images were taken, so that the same prominent impact crater is seen in both views. Moon abcs fact sheet 18 exploring the moon a teachers guide with activities, nasa eg199710116hq property earth moon brain busters iron, nickel metal silicon and oxygen bound in minerals that contain water, plus organic materials. The moon orbits the earth at an average distance of 239,000 miles 384,000 km.
The outer ring, the thebe gossamer ring, is named after the moon thebe. Facts about the moon the moon is not a planet, but a satellite of the earth. Like the earth itself, the moon is unique in some ways and rather ordinary in others. Other than earth, the moon is the only surface in the solar system to have been stepped on by human beings. Additional observations made between early 1996 and september 2003 by the galileo spacecraft allowed its surface to be imaged. In facts about the moon, dorianne laux doesnt escape this tendency as much as make you believe her ideas as much as you believe your own. Ganymede is the largest planetary moon and the only moon in the solar system known to have its own magnetic field. Gmuch like twilight, new moon keeps the steaminess to intense kisses between bella and edward, and some warm embraces and handholding with jacob. Read all about the amazing moon and be sure to take our quiz to test your knowledge at the end.
Later, it was found on images dating back to february 27, 1979. Buzz aldrin standing near the american flag during apollo 11. It is a dusty, airless place, dotted with craters and dark, flat plains of solidified lava called seas, or maria. The only month that can occur without a full moon is february. This is because the moon rotates around on its own axis in exactly the same time it takes to orbit the earth, meaning the same side is always facing the earth. But what are some things you dont know about the bright shiny object that pierces the darkness. In the amount of time it takes for jupiter to orbit the sun one time, the earth orbits the sun 11. Orbiting within ios orbit, which is the innermost of the four largest moons of jupiter called the galilean moons, are four smaller moons named metis, adrastea, amalthea, and thebe. Facts about the sun2011 shreveportbossier astronomical.
Life on moon is not possible brief documentary moon. The outer edge of this ring is about 220,000 km 6,702 mi from jupiter. Each activity uses and reinforces all the knowledge the students have been gaining about the moon and earth from units 1 and 2. The planet jupiter has a system of rings known as the rings of jupiter or the jovian ring system. To read this evidence left click the circle inside the square. In this video we will learn about the possible situations which can be there on the moon for life. The sun is an ordinary star with eight planets and various dwarf planets and asteroids orbiting around it. The moon rotates at 10 miles per hour compared to the earths rotation of miles per hour. Thebe moon simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. In the background of the oregon woods, laux find new ways to fuse her complex themes of class, sex, gender, love, and humanity into great poetry. Facts about the moon for kids primary homework help. Footprints on the moon will remain there for millions of years. The orbit of a planet is the time and path it takes to go around the sun.
The suns mass is 333,000 times the mass of the earth. Ten facts about the moon bob the aliens tour of the. This is a brand new discovery and it is evidence that leaves absolutely no doubt that the moon was deliberately planned and engineered 4. Synnott in images from the voyager 1 space probe taken on march 5, 1979, while making its flyby of jupiter. Thebe is the planets seventh largest moon, with a mean radius of about 49 km. These values are unusually high for a closer moon and can be explained by the past influence of the closest galilean satellite io. Also check out our activity worksheet at the end of the article which you can download or print. Thebe is one of the small moons, and is about the size of a county, at 100 km 62 miles wide as a small moon, the composition and surface features of thebe. Io is the most volcanically active body in our solar system. An enhanced image of the moon taken with the noao mosaic ccd camera using two nsf telescopes at kitt peak national observatory. In this article, beauty and tips takes a look at 10 interesting facts about the moon. The moon moderates earths wobble on its axis, leading to a relatively stable climate over billions of years. Top 10 fascinating facts about the moon astronomy trek.
1105 583 673 1260 326 1452 958 741 57 854 226 812 930 1040 1429 601 962 650 660 1471 379 146 1601 1387 564 1435 358 1001 157 1506 1199 96 1228 997 848 1623 368 934 819 668 431 1282 802 1461 1106 1316 1063 557 311 482 99