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The Moon: A Complete Guide

AجËeب_ ŪlلآÅه
5 min readJan 11, 2025

  • The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite and the fifth largest in the solar system. It has been a source of fascination, study, and discovery for humans for thousands of years. This article explores its physical characteristics, origin, phases, cultural significance, and role in modern science.

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Physical Properties

  • Size and Distance:
    The Moon has a diameter of 3,474 kilometers, about 27% of Earth's. It orbits Earth at an average distance of 384,400 kilometers. Its size and distance make it appear almost the same size as the Sun in the sky, allowing for events such as solar eclipses to occur.

Sure! Here is an extended discussion of the Moon, including additional details about its formation, geology, exploration, and cultural impact.

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The Formation of the Moon: Extended Details

  • The formation of the Moon is an important topic in planetary science, and while the Giant Impact Hypothesis is the most widely accepted theory, there are alternative hypotheses:
  • 1. Co-formation Theory: Proposes that the Moon and Earth formed together from the same protoplanetary disk. However, this fails to explain the differences in their composition.
  • 2. Capture Theory…

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Phases: The Moon goes through phases approximately every 29.5 days, from the New Moon to the Full Moon and back.

Formation: The leading theory is that the Moon formed about 4.5 billion years ago from debris left over after a giant impact between Earth and a Mars-sized body named Theia.