Known since prehistoric times, it is the brightest object in the sky after the sun Its name in english, like that of earth, is of germanic and old english derivation. Discover interesting facts about how the moon formed, what it's made out of, and the many missions humans have launched to explore it. 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. A full moon occurs when the earth is between the sun and the moon The moon's orbit creates different phases, including a full moon Full moons have traditional names, like the sturgeon moon The november supermoon will be the closest to earth Here's when to look up
With our 2025 moon phase calendar, you'll find the current moon phase for tonight—plus, all the phases of the moon for each day of the month. It orbits the earth at an average distance of approximately 240,000 miles (384,000 km) The moon completes an orbit of the earth every 27.3 days (approximately 655 hours) The moon also rotates on its axis Because of tidal forces, it completes one revolution every 655 hours. The soviet luna programme was the first successful lunar programme, its luna 1 (1959) being the first partially successful lunar mission the first image taken of the far side of the moon, returned by luna 3 (1959) missions to the moon have been numerous and represent some of the earliest endeavours in space missions, with continuous exploration of the moon beginning in 1959
Learn how earth's moon formed, how its orbit affects earth's tides, why solar and lunar eclipses happen and the history of lunar exploration.
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