1. CHAPTER 12.4 EARTH’S MOON

2. INTRODUCTION Galileo made most of the observations about the moon’s surface that we will learn about. Used a telescope, a device built to observe distant objects by making them appear closer

3. THE MOON’S SURFACE Features on the moon’s surface include maria, craters, and highlands. Maria: dark flat areas Latin word for “seas” Crater: large round pit Caused by meteoroids: chunks of rock or dust from space Highlands: light colored areas of the moon

4. THE MOON’S SURFACE

5. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE MOON The moon is dry and airless. Compared to Earth, the moon is small and has large variations in its surface temperatures. You would need a spacesuit for air, to protect against sunburn, and to keep you at the right temperature.

6. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE MOON Size & Density: diameter is a little less than the distance across the United States, or about ¼ of the Earth’s size. Moon’s density is similar to the density of Earth’s outer layers

7. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE MOON The moons temperature ranges from 130 0 C to -180 0 C at night. Since gravity of the moon is weak, gases can escape easily into space. The moon has no liquid water, but there is frozen water, which are shielded from sunlight by crater walls.

8. THE ORIGIN OF THE MOON Collision-ring theory: a planet sized object collided with Earth to form the moon.