The moon is, as everyone knows, the only and very large satellite of our planet. Even in ancient written sources that existed to this day, including the Bible, it is referred to as the "night light". And not in vain - because in the visible sky this object is the second in brightness and magnitude after the Sun. The diameter of the moon is about four times smaller than the earth. Its volume is only about two percent of the same indicator of the “blue planet”. The force of gravity on the "night luminary" is six times less than on Earth. Accordingly, the acceleration of gravity on its surface is 16.7% of the one we are used to. In particular, this is indirectly confirmed by the stories of astronauts who visited this unusual natural satellite.
Between the Moon and the Earth there is gravitational attraction, which is facilitated by the distance between them and the ratio of their masses. One of the consequences of this phenomenon on our planet is ebbs and flows. They are noticeable on almost all its water coatings. In turn, the interaction energy of the Earth and the Moon is absorbed due to the tides. Due to this, the distance between our planet and its satellite is constantly increasing by about four centimeters per year. But this is not all, because of this interaction, the motion of the Earth around its own axis is constantly slowed down. Because of this, for every hundred years, the length of the day increases by a certain fraction of a second, and, in addition, the period of circulation of the "cold star" around our planet or, as they say, the cycle of the moon, increases. Now it is a little over 27 days and 13 hours.
Nowadays, the average distance to the moon is approximately 384, 401 km. These are almost 60 equatorial radii of our planet. The diameter of the moon is much smaller than the earth, as mentioned above. Its volume is 2.03% of the same indicator of our planet. In numerical terms, the diameter of the moon corresponds to 3476 km. Light from it is 500, 000 times weaker than from the Sun. It reaches the Earth in just 1.3 seconds. This is the largest satellite in the solar system, the size of which is larger than that of the planet Pluto.
Interestingly, the moon has its own seas. There are many of them, and scientists, having studied the surface of the "night luminary", managed to give them a name. But, if the Earth’s area is covered by water more than
70%, then on the moon the sea basins occupy 30-40% of its entire visible surface. Her atmosphere is characterized by high sparseness. This is the reason for frequent and sharp temperature drops - from extreme cold, which does not leave any chance for life, up to +120 degrees. Due to the fact that there is no shell of ozone or other gas above the Moon, the sky from its surface always appears black. From there you can see only that part of the Earth that is illuminated by the Sun.
In our time, much is known about this satellite: the diameter of the moon, the distance to it, its mass is approximately calculated. However, there are also “white spots” in the knowledge of scientists. The structure of its core is still not known for certain. However, according to some studies of scientists, it is most likely similar to the earthly one and represents a huge hot metal ball.
