Facts About the Moon

• The diameter at the equator of the Moon is 3476 km (2160 miles)
• The average distance of the Moon from the Earth is 384,400 km (238,860 miles)
• The Moon spins on its axis once every 27.33 days.
• The Moon circles the Earth once in every 27.33 days.

Phases of the Moon

More or less of the Moon’s surface is lit by the Sun as it travels around the Earth.  This results in varying appearances of the Moon, which are called phases.  If the Moon is directly between Earth and the Sun, we cannot see it.  His is called the New moon.  It gradually gets bigger until all of the Moon can be seen.  This is called the Full Moon.  This stage is called waxing.  The moon then gradually becomes smaller, or starts to ‘wane’.  It takes the moon 29.5 days to go through its phases.

Space Travel and the Moon

• In 1959 the Russian Probe, Luna 2, crash landed on the Moon and Luna 3 took pictures of the Moon’s hidden side.
• In 1964, the US Moon probe, Ranger 7, sent back close-up pictures of the Moon before it crash landed.
• In 1966, the Moon probes, Luna 9 and Surveyor 1, soft landed on the Moon’s surface and sent back pictures.
• In 1968, Apollo 8 astronauts travelled around the Moon and back.
• 20th July 1969, Neil Armstrong became the ‘First Man on the Moon’.  He explored the Moon on foot with Edwin Aldred for nearly three hours.  One of the most famous quotes in the world came from this event, “That’s one small step for a man, and one giant leap for mankind.”
• There has since been speculation and controversy about the validity of images showing the first steps on the Moon.  Some believe that the whole event was faked,
• Two other events occurred in 1969.  Firstly, a Russian robot spacecraft landed on the Moon and returned with a sample of the soil.