8 UNKNOWN FACTS ABOUT THE
MOON
By: Kavya Bhatt
The Moon makes Earth more livable by reducing our planet's wobble on its axis, resulting in a generally stable climate.
Here are some interesting facts about the Moon, as per NASA.
The Moon was likely formed after a Mars-sized body collided with Earth several billion years ago.
Moon shares a name with all Moons since no one knew there were other Moons until Galileo Galilei discovered four Moons circling Jupiter in 1610.
In Latin, the Moon was known as Luna, which is now the primary adjective for anything Moon-related: Lunar
The Moon's Radius at around 1,080 miles(1,740 km), is less than one-third that of Earth's width.
It is slowly moving away from Earth, getting about an inch farther away each year.
The Moon had active volcanoes long ago, but today they are all dormant and have not erupted for millions of years.
The atmosphere surrounding the Moon is extremely thin and weak. It offers no defence against the Sun's radiation or meteoroids striking it.
The moon's surface temperature rises around 127 degrees Celsius under the Sun and falls to -173 degrees Celsius during darkness.