Earth

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Earth Moon
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Moon Earth Galileo Spacecraft - December 16,
1992
Moon in foreground Viewed from 4 million miles
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Earth (Apollo 17 - December 1972)
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Earth (Northeast Africa Arabian Peninsula)
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Earth Topography
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Earths Moon
National Optical Astronomy Observatories
composite image
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Lunar Features

• Craters Volcanic or impact?

• Mountains Evidence for plate tectonics?

• Oceans Also called maria or seas

• Rilles Collapsed lava tubes

• Rays Radiate from several prominent craters

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Region of Tycho and Clavius Craters Photo by
H.A. McAlister 29 March 1969
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Neil Armstrong Stepping onto Lunar Surface in the
Sea of Tranquility 20 July 1969
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Moon
Earth-facing Side
Far Side
(From Clementine I - 1994)
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Moon (Mare Imbrium Copernicus)
(From Apollo 17 - 1972)
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Moon (Copernicus Crater Close-Up)
93 miles
(From Lunar Orbiter 5 - 1991)
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Moon (Euler Crater Copernicus Secondary Craters)
30 km
Copernicus 200 km
(From Apollo 17 - 1972)
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Moon (Mare Orientale)
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Moon (Perpetually Shadowed South Pole)
300 km
(From Clementine I - 1994)
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Moon (The Apollo Program)
Neil Armstrongs Footprint Apollo 11 - 1969
Buzz Aldrin Apollo 11 - 1969
Six Landings 1969 -72
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Moon (Visiting Hadley Rille)
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Moon (Taurus-Littrow Landing Site)
Harrison Schmidt Apollo 17 - December 1972
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Lunar Origin

• Capture Once a separate body that was
  gravitationally captured by Earth. But, requires
  an interaction of three bodies and is thus very
  improbable.

• Fission Moon split off from a very rapidly
  rotating young Earth. But, such a rapid rotation
  probably would have broken Earth into many small
  bodies

• Co-formation Earth and Moon formed together
  with their final properties. But, they should
  resemble each other more closely in the chemical
  and structural properties

• Impact on Earth of a Mars-sized Planet Resulted
  in a fraction of the Earths crust and mantle
  thrown into a region around the Earth. Material
  then coalesced to form Moon. Best explains lunar
  properties.