Look up at the sky, what do you see? Stars most likely, but what about the Moon? To some, seeing the moon in the sky has become a stale sight for the eyes. When you see it every day, it becomes rather boring to look at. All the focus is stolen by the bright dots of stars, but don’t underestimate the Moon. There are some awesome facts about the Moon that you might not know. Sure, it’s in the sky, but this one fact about the moon is just that — one fact. There is plenty to learn about this cosmic body that rotates around the Earth!
Who’s rocky and big? No, not the protagonist of Rocky, but rather our one and only Moon. This lump of rock that brings in the joy of night every day is one of the coolest things in our sky. A lot of interesting facts about the Moon focus more on the scientific side about the Moon. After all, we humans like to explore things. We pushed ourselves so much that we even landed on it. But there are a lot of cool facts about the Moon that we can learn, based more on the creative side. The Moon is said to change emotions based on its phases and waves because of its pull. Our Moon is also as pretty as a picture; some photographers capture its beauty by taking stunning supermoon photos. Of course, there are also some strange facts about the Moon, but give it some slack — it’s our only natural satellite in the sky!
Now, you might just know the crumbs of the fun facts about the Moon that there is to learn. It’s just like Earth — interesting and deep. But why spend time looking for singular facts, when you can have it all here? With the list we created below, not only will you enhance your knowledge of our rocky friend in the sky, but you might also find some interesting talking points to share with others. If a fact piqued your interest, upvote it for others to see. But if you have something to add, be sure to leave a comment.
#41
The Moon has over 300,000 craters with a diameter of over 1 km that have been identified on its near-side.
Report
8points
#42
There have been 78 movies made by Hollywood-based studios set on the Moon or that mention the Moon in the plot.
Report
8points
#43
Stuart Roosa, an American astronaut, took 500 tree seeds to the Moon in 1971 before bringing them back to Earth.
These tree seedlings, such as sycamore, sweetgum, and redwood, have grown successfully and are still flourishing today. Many “Moon Trees” have gone global, with a loblolly pine gifted to the Emperor of Japan and a sweet gum planted in Brazil.
Report
8points
#44
The side of the Moon that we don’t see was first photographed in 1959 by the Soviet Union and their Luna 3 module.
Report
8points
#45
After NASA deliberately crashed the Lunar Prospector module onto the lunar surface in 1999, geologist Dr. Eugene Shoemaker's ashes were the only ones to be scattered on the lunar surface.
Report
8points
#46
The light created by a full moon polarizes in the Earth’s atmosphere, so dung beetles navigate better under a full moon.
Report
8points
#47
Franz von Paula Gruithuisen claimed to have seen towns of little green men on the Moon through his telescope in the 19th century. He had lost his reputation, yet he was still respected enough to have a crater named after him.
Report
8points
#48
The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It goes around the Earth at a distance of about 385,000 kilometers.
Report
7points
#49
Some ancient communities believed the moon was a bowl of fire, while others thought it was a mirror that reflected Earth's lands and seas.
Report
7points
#50
Some ancient Greek sects thought that the Moon was the home of the dead.
Report
7points
#51
The Moon is a dusty ball of rock, measuring 3,476km in diameter – that’s roughly a quarter of the size of Earth.
Report
7points
#52
Moon seas, despite their name, are plains of solidified lava which appear dark on the Moon's disc.
Report
7points
#53
Early Greeks thought of the moon as the goddess Artemis.
Where the Egyptians had thought of the moon as a man and the sun as a woman, the Greeks reversed that and thought of the moon as a woman.
Report
7points
#54
American Indian Tribes gave names to each of the full moons to keep track of the passing year.
The names are associated with the entire month until the next full moon occurs. For example, in March, it is known as the Full Worm Moon because earthworms appear out of the soft ground for birds to eat. Since a lunar month averages 29 days, the dates of the moons change from year to year.
Report
7points
#55
The Moon is the second densest satellite among those whose densities are known. Jupiter's moon Io is the first-densest.
Report
6points
#56
During eclipses, the moon, Earth and sun are in a straight line.
A lunar eclipse takes place when Earth is directly between the sun and the moon, casting Earth's shadow onto the moon's face. A lunar eclipse can occur only during a full moon.
Report
6points
#57
During the 1950’s the USA considered detonating a nuclear bomb on the Moon.
The secret project was during the height cold war was known as “A Study of Lunar Research Flights” or “Project A119” and meant as a show of strength at a time they were lagging behind in the space race.
Report
6points
#58
The largest crater discovered on the Moon is called the South Pole-Aitken basin - a whopping 2,500 km in diameter and around 8 km deep.
Report
6points
#60
The Roman author Lucian wrote the first-ever science-fiction novel set in space over two thousand years ago, so people have been dreaming of setting foot on the Moon for a very long time.
Report
6points