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| | Due to libration, a slight "wobble" in the lunar motion, we actually see a little bit more than half of the Moon's surface; sometimes it is turned a bit one way and sometimes the other. However, nobody had any idea of what the far side of the Moon looked like until 1959, when a Soviet satellite photographed it and relayed pictures back. Not surprisingly, it turned out to look a lot like near side. | | Due to libration, a slight "wobble" in the lunar motion, we actually see a little bit more than half of the Moon's surface; sometimes it is turned a bit one way and sometimes the other. However, nobody had any idea of what the far side of the Moon looked like until 1959, when a Soviet satellite photographed it and relayed pictures back. Not surprisingly, it turned out to look a lot like near side. |
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| − | The months of the Muslim calendar are determined by observations of the [[hilal]], the moment at which the thin crescent moon first becomes visible. This marks the start of a month. The hilal is determined by actual observation. \ | + | The months of the Muslim calendar are determined by observations of the [[hilal]], the moment at which the thin crescent moon first becomes visible. This marks the start of a month. The hilal is determined by actual observation. |
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| | ==Unusual characteristics of the Moon== | | ==Unusual characteristics of the Moon== |
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| − | |The Moon presents the same side to Earth at all times. That means that the rotation of the Earth offsets the separate effects of the revolution of the Moon. Physicists explain this phenomenon by [[tidal locking]]; tidal forces on Earth caused a bulge on the Moon, thereby creating a drag on the rotation of the Moon until its same face always presents to the Earth. It was once believed that the planet [[Mercury]] had a similar locked rotation due to gravitational forces from the sun, such that the same side of Mercury always faces the sun. In fact, Mercury's tidal locking is incomplete; it does not always present the same face to the sun, but rather switches the side that it presents to the sun every full revolution. | + | |The Moon presents the same side to Earth at all times. That means that the rotation of the Earth offsets the separate effects of the revolution of the Moon. Some non-creationist scientists suggest that this is explained by [[tidal locking]]; tidal forces on Earth caused a bulge on the Moon, thereby creating a drag on the rotation of the Moon until its same face always presents to the Earth. It was once believed that the planet [[Mercury]] had a similar locked rotation due to gravitational forces from the sun, such that the same side of Mercury always faces the sun. In fact, Mercury's tidal locking is incomplete; it does not always present the same face to the sun, but rather switches the side that it presents to the sun every full revolution. |
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| | Current tidal forces exerted by the Earth on the Moon cannot account fully for its bulge or egg shape, though accounting for greater tidal forces in the past may explain this discrepancy.<ref>http://physics.fortlewis.edu/Astronomy/astronomy%20today/CHAISSON/AT308/HTML/AT30803.HTM</ref> | | Current tidal forces exerted by the Earth on the Moon cannot account fully for its bulge or egg shape, though accounting for greater tidal forces in the past may explain this discrepancy.<ref>http://physics.fortlewis.edu/Astronomy/astronomy%20today/CHAISSON/AT308/HTML/AT30803.HTM</ref> |
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| − | |There were several [[Moon Theories|theories]] about the origin of the Moon. Most of the older theories had been discarded in the face of observations (for example based on lunar samples).<ref>Planetary Science Institute: [http://www.psi.edu/projects/moon/moon.html The Origin of the Moon]</ref> The currently accepted theory is that the Moon originated from a collision early in Earth's history which created an orbiting ring of debris from the iron-poor surface of the planet which eventually coalesced into the moon.<ref>http://www.astronomy.com/asy/default.aspx?c=a&id=2198</ref> This theory explains many things that spoke against the older theories, but other scientists have raised new points may speak against it if the theory fails to explain them. | + | |The [[Moon Theories|theories]] about the origin of the Moon accepted by non-creationist scientists were disproved by lunar samples.<ref>Planetary Science Institute: [http://www.psi.edu/projects/moon/moon.html The Origin of the Moon]</ref> Over a decade later, some non-creationist scientists accepted a new and untestable theory of an asteroid collision with the Earth to create an orbiting ring of debris to coalesce into the Moon. moon.<ref>http://www.astronomy.com/asy/default.aspx?c=a&id=2198</ref> Other scientists have shown that this new theory is not consistent with lunar samples either.<ref>[[Moon theories]].</ref> |
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