14. 우리말 바로 쓰기

박남일의 <좋은 문장을 쓰기 위한 우리말 풀이사전> 읽기

월정月靜 강대실 2006. 12. 20. 09:56
박남일의 <좋은 문장을 쓰기 위한 우리말 풀이사전> 읽기-사무실에서
번호 : 2   글쓴이 : anarchist
조회 : 11   스크랩 : 0   날짜 : 2006.03.07 08:24

2004.11.26. 알라딘에서 산책

 

제1부 우주와 자연

 

2006. 2. 22. 수요일

 

0001 갓밝이 : 새벽 동이 틀 무렵의 희끄무레한 상태. 지금 막 밝아진 때

 黎 明 (여명)

黎 (려) 검다,동트다.
明 (명) 밝다.

[의미] 1) 희미하게 밝아오는 새벽. 어둑새벽. 旦明(단명), 質明(질명)
2) 희망의 빛

[예문] 黎明(여명)의 눈동자

[주의어] 餘命(여명) : 남아있는 목숨. 餘生(여생), 餘齡(여령) { 餘(여)남다, 命(명)목숨 }

http://www.hanja.pe.kr/han_5/h5_e07.htm

 

"부지런하기로 소문난 김씨는 날마다 갓밝이에 벌써 쇠꼴을 한 바지게 베어 짊어지고 사립짝을 밀고 들어온다."

 

0002 검기울다 : 검은 기운이나 먹구름이 차차 퍼져서 해를 가리고 날이 점점 어두워진다.

 

해거름에 검기울어가는 창가에 서면 삶이 참으로 덧없다는 생각이 들지요.

 

0003 놀 : 하늘이 햇살로 벌겋게 보이는 현상

저녁놀, 아침놀

노을은 시적표현

 

동살이 비쳐드는 아침놀과 서쪽 하늘을 붉게 물들인 저녁놀은 하루의 시작과 끝을 알리는 거대한 신호등의 불빛이다.

 

004 돋을볕 : 해돋이 무렵 처음으로 솟아오르는 샛별

     햇귀: 해돋이때 처음 비쳐드는 빛

 

매 새해 첫날 해맞이를 하는 사람들은 기실 해돋이 때 뿜어져 나오는 돌을볕을 보기 위해서 명산의 꼭대기나  동해 바닷가로 모여든다.

 

0005 돋을양지 : 돌을볕이 잘 드는 곳

 

나지막한   언덕배기의 돋을양지에 자리 잡은 작은 집에서, 날마다 안방으로 쏟아져 들어오는 돋을볕에 흠뻑 젖어 아침을 맞이 하는 것이 그가 꿈꾸는 세상이었다.

 

0006 동살 : 해돋이 전 동이 트면서 푸르스름하게 비추는 빛줄기

 

'동살잡히다'

 

바닷바람은 매우 차가웠으나 우리는 동살이 잡히기 시작할 무렵엔느 바닷가 모래밭에 나가 해돋이를 기다렸다.

 

0007 무지개

쌍무지개

스무지개

암무지개

 

 

0008 볕뉘 : 볕의 그림자

 

0009 살 : 해나 별 따의의 천체가 내뻗치는 기운

'살차다': 혜성의 고리빛이 세찬 것을 말함

고개를 들어 하늘을 우러러보니 살찬 별빛이 하늘을 수놓고 있다.

 

0010 해거름 : 해가 서쪽으로 기울어질 무렵

해거름은 해넘이보다 조금 앞선 때를 가리킴

 

 

2006. 2. 23. 목요일

 

0011 해넘이 : 해가 지평선이나 수평선으로 잠기는 때

'해질녘'

'해질물'

일몰(日沒 )

 

0012 해돋이

 

0013 해바라기 : 양지바른 곳에서 햇볕을 쬐는 일

날도 좋은데 그렇게 방 안에만 틀어박혀 있지말고 옥상에 올라가서 해바라기라도 하렴

 

0014 햇귀 : 해돋이 때 처음으로 비치는 해

 

오늘 아침엔 언뜻 햇귀가 비치는 가 싶더니 이내 매지구름이 몰려와 해를 삼키고 말았다.

cf.매지구름

 

0015 햇덧 : 낮이 짧아지는 가은날, 짧은 해가 지는 동안

 찰나(刹那)

이태째 시난관하던 그녀는 지난가을 햇덧에 돌아올 수 없는 곳으로 떠나고 말았다.

 

0016 햇무리 : 햇빛이 대기 속에 수증기에 비치어 해 둘레에 둥글게 나타나는 테두리

(준말)햇물

일훈(日暈 )

그는 고개를 들어 하늘을 보았다. 부연 하늘빛 한가운데 햇무리가 져 있었다. 어지러웠다.

 

0017 햇발 : 사방으로 뻗친 햇살

우리가 탄 자동차는 노해에 떨어지는 따가운 햇발을 받으면서 해변을  따라간다.

 

0018 햇살 : 해에서 나오는 빛줄기

 

0019 고른한낮 : 태양이 자오선을 지나는 평균시각

0020 고리일식 : 달이 태양의 중심만 가리고 그 둘레는 가리지 못하여 태양이 고리모양으로 보이는 일식

0021 빛기둥 : 좁은 틈 사이로 뻗치는 햇살

0022 하늘갓 : 땅위에 펼쳐져 보이는 하늘의 가

 

박용수 지음, <새우리말 갈래사전>,

1998.10.23. 교본문고에서 산 책

 

가을하늘

개밥바라기 : 저녁에 서쩍 하늘에 보이는 금성=저녁샛별

겨울해

고른해시 : 어떤 지점의 자오선에 평균 태양이 나주하였을 때르 12시로 하고 평균1/24을 1시간으로 정한 시법. ?宣틸【? 표준시를 말한다.

고른햇날 : 평균 태양이 어떤 지점의 자오선에 남중하였다가 다시 남중 할 때까지의 시간. 진태양일의 1년간의 평균

긴긴해

동녁하늘

밤하늘

봄하늘

빛고리 : 해나 달이 작은 불방울이나 얼음방울로 된 구름이 지나 비칠 때 그 둘레에 색깔을 가진 고리가 나타나는 현상

아침빛

아침해

하침햇살

어스름 : 해가 진 다음이나 해 뜨기 전에 얼마 동안 주위가 훤해 있는 것

이지러짐선

너녁해

저녁빛

저녁햇빛

지는해

참햇날(solar day)

축돌이

한사리

핵리빛

해길디

해길이

해비침

햇덩이

햇발

햇빛

햇빛열

흰얼룩

 

 

sun:


in Spanish | in French | in Italian
in context | images

Adapted From: WordNet 2.0 Copyright 2003 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

sun
A noun
sun
  a typical star that is the source of light and heat for the planets in the solar system; "the sun contains 99.85% of the mass in the solar system"
Category Tree:
sun
  any star around which a planetary system evolves
Category Tree:
sun
  a person considered as a source of warmth or energy or glory etc
Category Tree:
sunlight, sunshine, sun
  the rays of the sun; "the shingles were weathered by the sun and wind"
Category Tree:
Sunday, Lord's Day, Dominicus, Sun
  first day of the week; observed as a day of rest and worship by most Christians
Category Tree:
B verb
sun, sunbathe
  expose one's body to the sun
Category Tree:
sun, insolate, solarize, solarise
  expose to the rays of the sun or affect by exposure to the sun; "insolated paper may turn yellow and crumble"; "These herbs suffer when sunned"
Category Tree:


Look up "sun" at Merriam-Webster
Look up "sun" at dictionary.com

Forum discussions with the word(s) 'sun' in the title:
No titles with the word(s) 'sun'.

See Also:
 
Links:

Copyright ⓒ 2005 WordReference.com

 

sun (STAR) 
the star that the Earth spins around, which provides light and heat for the Earth, or the light or heat that the Earth receives from this star:
The sun rises in the east and sets in the west.
The sun's rays are at their most powerful at midday.
I think I've had a bit too much sun today - I've got a headache.
Shall we go and sit out in the sun?
We thought we'd go out for a walk while the sun was shining.
.

sun sets on sth LITERAR

 

 


beam (LIGHT) noun [C]
2 a line of radiation or particles flowing in one direction:
a laser beam
an electron beam

 

brilliance noun [U]
I had never seen diamonds shine with such brilliance before.

 

candlelight noun [U]
the light that a candle produces when it is burning

candlelit adjective [before noun]
a candlelit dinner

 

daylight noun [U

The colours look much better in daylight.

 

firelight noun [U]
the light produced by a fire, especially one in a fireplace

 

floodlight noun [C usually plural]
a large powerful electric light used for lighting outside areas, such as sports grounds or buildings, in the dark:
This evening's match will be played under floodlights.

 

1 투광 조명건물·인물 등에 여러 각도에서 광선비추어 뚜렷이 드러나게 하는 조명법》
2
조명등, 투광기, 조명 투사기(= proj ctor)
vt. (floodlight·ed, -lit[ ]) 투광 조명으로 비추다
floodlight·ing n. 투광 조명

 

fluorescence noun [U]

flu·o·res·cence

,  n 물리·화학
1
형광 발광
2 (물질의) 형광성
3 형광

glossiness noun [U]광택이 남

the quality of being glossy

 

illumination noun [C or U] FORMAL

The only illumination was from a skylight.

 

incandescence noun [U]

in·can·des·cence, -cen·cy

 n. 고온 발광;백열광;《비유》 (분노·격정 따위의) 불타오름

 

infrared adjective 적외선의
a type of light that feels warm but cannot be seen:
Their pilots are guided by an infrared optical system that shows images clearly even at night.

 

lamplight noun [U] LITERARY
light from a lamp, especially light which is not very bright and only shines over a small area:
She studied the pale skin of his face in the dim lamplight.

 

light (BRIGHTNESS) noun
1 [U] the brightness that comes from the sun, fire, etc. and from electrical devices, and that allows things to be seen:

a bright light

fluorescent/ultraviolet light

a beam/ray of light
Light was streaming in through the open door.
It's a north-facing room so it doesn't get much light (= brightness from the sun).

 

luminescence noun [U] LITERARY OR SPECIALIZED

 

luminosity noun [U]

 

lu·mi·nos·i·ty

 n. (pl. -ties)
1 광력, 광명, 발광()
2 발광물();빛나는[걸출한, 훌륭한]
3 (항성의) 광도
4 총명, 재기 랄함

moonbeam noun [C]
a beam or line of light which comes from the moon

 

moonlight (LIGHT) noun [U]
the pale light of the moon:
The young lovers sat in the moonlight.

 

opalescence noun [U] LITERARY

 

phosphorescence noun [U] SPECIALIZED

 

photo- (LIGHT) prefix
connected with or produced by light:
photosynthesis

 

shininess noun [U]

 

starlight noun [U]
the light produced by stars

 

sun (STAR) noun [S or U]
the star that the Earth spins around, which provides light and heat for the Earth, or the light or heat that the Earth receives from this star:
The sun rises in the east and sets in the west.
The sun's rays are at their most powerful at midday.
I think I've had a bit too much sun today - I've got a headache.
Shall we go and sit out in the sun?
We thought we'd go out for a walk while the sun was shining.

 

sunlight noun [U]
the light that comes from the sun:
a ray/beam/shaft/pool of sunlight

The morning/afternoon/evening sunlight shone through the curtains.
The lake sparkled in the bright/brilliant sunlight.

 

sunshine (LIGHT) noun [U]
the light and heat that come from the sun:
The children were out playing in the sunshine.

 

torchlight noun [U]
the light from a torch:
I saw the blade of an open knife shine in his hand in the torchlight.

 

-Cambridge English Dictionary 2003


 

태양

太陽

Sun

지구를 비롯한 태양계 천체들이 공전할 때 중심이 되는 별.

태양의 질량은 태양계 전체질량의 99%를 차지한다. 태양은 막대한 양의 에너지 원천으로서 그 에너지의 일부는 빛과 열의 형태로 지구에 도달하여 지구상에 사는 생물들이 생명을 유지하는 데 필수적인 요소가 된다. 태양은 은하계의 평범한 별 중의 하나이다. 태양은 우리은하의 중심으로부터 약 3만 광년 거리에서 많은 항성과 더불어 은하계의 중심 주위를 돌고 있으며, 그 주기는 약 2억 년이다. 태양은 초신성의 폭발로 생긴 가스가 다시 모여서 형성된 별로 추측되므로 태양의 구성물질은 과거에 폭발한 초신성 내부에서 만들어진 것일 것이다. 아래에 태양과 관계 있는 여러 가지 자료를 나타냈다.

▷상세한 정보를 보시려면 태양에 대한 여러 가지 자료 도표를 참조하세요.

 

태양에 대한 여러 가지 자료

적도반지름 6.96×105km
부피 1.412×1027m3
질량 1.99×1033g
비중 1.41
광도 3.86×1033erg/s
지구로부터의 평균거리 1AU=1.496×108km
유효온도 5,740K
스펙트럼형 G2
안시절대등급 +4.83
안시등급 -26.86
연령 약 45억~50억 년
수명 약 100억 년

 



COPYRIGHT (C)한국브리태니커회사, 1999-2006

내용을 인용하시려면 인용 부분에 다음과 같은 주를 달아야 합니다.
"태양" 한국 브리태니커 온라인
<http://members.britannica.co.kr/bol/topic.asp?article_id=b22t2217b>
[2006. 2. 24자 기사]

COPYRIGHT (C)한국브리태니커회사, 1999-2006

 

2006. 2.27. 월요일

 

 

0023 갈고리달 몹시 이지러진 달. 초승달이나 그믐달

'손톱달'

한밤중에 뒤척이다가 뜰에 나와보니 우듬지엑 걸린 갈고리달이 처연한 빛을 흘리고 있다.

 

0024 달가림 '월식'의 순우리말

옛날 사람들은 달가림이나 해가림을 재앙의 징조로 여겼단다. 불길하게 여겼던 게지.

 

0025 달무리 달 언저리에 둥글게 두른, 구름 같은 허연 테

그날 밤 우리는 황금빛 달무리가 진 밤하늘을 바라보며 지난날의 아득한 추억에 흠씬 젖었다.

 

0026 달물결 달빛이 은은히 비낀 물결

 

우리가 잔뜩 긴장하며 둔치 수풀 속에 몸을 숨기고 있을 때, 달물결 위로 거룻배 한 척이 소리 없이 다가오고 있었다

 

0027 달안개 달밤에 피어오르는 안개 또는 달빛이 안개처럼 뿌옇게 보이는 것

 

달안개가 피어오르는 숲 속, 여기에 늑대의 울부짖음이 음향으로 더해지면 그 다음에는 영락없이 소복한  귀신이나 저승사자가 등장한다.

 

0028 달편 반달모양으로 만든떡. 월편

만두(灣頭 );편수, 편수기

"편보다 떡이 낫다."

반달 모양의 떡을 월편이라고도 하고 달편이라고도 하는데, 같은 떡이라도 월편보다는 달편이 낫네!

 

0029 손톱달 초승달이나 그믐달같은 손톱 모양의 달

 

손톱달만 한 달빛이라도 있었으면 그 밤이 그렇게 무섭고 불안하지는 않았으리라.

 

0030 어스름달 해가 진 다음이나  뜨기 전의 어스름녘에 뜨는 달

 

검기울어 가는 서쪽 하늘에 어스름달의 엷은 빛이 흐르기 시작할 무렵에야 불현듯 그와의 약속이 떠올랐다.

 

0031 으스름달 으스름하게 비치는 달

어스름달 ; 달이 떠 있는 때에 따라 붙여진 이름

으스름달 ; 달이 비치는 모양에 따라 붙여진 이름

동네 앞 자수지는 짙은 안개에 싸여 있고, 초가지붕 위로는 으스름달이 처연한 빛을 흘리고 있다.

 

0032 제돌이 천체가 자전을 하는 것

미국의 시간과 우리나라의 시간은 다르다. 그것은 지구가 제돌이를 하기 때문이다.

 

0033 조각달 반달보다 더 이지러진 달. 음력 초닷새 무렵의 상현달과 음력 스무닷새 무렵의 하현달

초승달,손톱달,갈고리달

조각달

반달

보름달

 

0034 지샌달 먼동이 튼 뒤 서쪽 하늘에 보이는 달

밤새 노동에 지친 몸을 이끌고 퇴근한느 내 발걸음 위로 지샌달의 지친 달빛이 희미하게 흘러내리고 있었다.

 

박용수 지음, <새우리말 갈래사전>,

1998.10.23. 교본문고에서 산 책

 

가을달

갈구렁그믐달

그믐달

 

Moon

지구의 유일한 자연위성.

평균 약 38만4,400㎞ 거리에서 지구 주위를 서에서 동으로 공전한다. 달의 크기는 지구의 1/3보다 작으며, 적도지름은 약 3,476㎞ 정도이다. 질량은 지구의 1/81.3에 불과하며, 지구의 밀도가 5.52g/㎤인 데 비해 달의 밀도는 약 3.34g/㎤이다. 달은 태양빛을 반사해 빛을 내지만 반사율(albedo), 즉 받은 빛을 반사하는 비율은 0.073에 불과하다. 달의 밝기는 주로 달표면의 기복과 이로 인해 생기는 그림자의 양에 따라 달라지므로 위상 주기에 따라 변한다.

달은 자전축을 중심으로 29.5일 만에 1바퀴씩 자전하는데, 이 주기는 달이 지구 주위를 1바퀴 공전하는 시간과 같다. 따라서 지구에서 볼 때 달은 거의 같은 면만 보이게 된다. 실질적인 자전율은 일정하나 달이 매일 움직이면서 그리는 호(弧)의 길이는 약간씩 변한다. 따라서 달이 지구를 향하는 면도 호의 길이에 따라 달라져서, 지구에서 볼 때 달의 구면은 달의 공전주기와 거의 같은 주기로 약간씩 진동하는 것처럼 보인다. 이같은 겉보기 진동을 광학 칭동(光學秤動)이라고 하며 그 양은 보통 6~7°이다.

달표면은 1609년 갈릴레오가 처음 관측한 이래 줄곧 망원경의 연구 대상이 되어왔다. 달표면을 자세히 그린 초기의 월면도 중 하나는 폴란드의 천문학자 요한네스 헤벨리우스의 저서인 〈월면학 Selenographia〉(1647)에 실려 있다. 이탈리아 예수회의 천문학자 G. B. 리치올리는 자신의 저서 〈새로운 알마게스트 Almagestum novum〉(1651)에서 달표면의 어두운 지역을 바다(mare)로 표현했는데, 이들 가운데 '비의 바다'(Mare Imbrium)나 '감로주의 바다'(Mare Nectaris) 등과 같이 환상적인 이름을 썼다. 오늘날에는 달표면에 물이 전혀 없다고 알려졌으나 이같은 이름은 계속 쓰이고 있다. 위에 기술된 저서들이 발표된 뒤 수세기 를 거치면서 더욱 상세한 월면도가 제작되었고, 마침내는 달사진이 제작되기에 이르렀다. 1959년에 와서는 소련의 우주탐사선이 지구에서 볼 수 없는 달 뒷면 사진을 촬영했다. 1960년대말 미국의 달궤도선(Lunar Orbiter)은 지구에서 보이는 면과 그 뒷면을 포함한 달표면 전체를 근접촬영했다.

달에서 눈에 가장 잘 띄는 구조는 구덩이(crater)이다 (→ 색인 : 운석구덩이). 이들 구덩이는 지름이 약 200㎞ 혹은 그 이상 되는 것도 있으며, 달표면에 매우 많이 흩어져 있으며 종종 서로 겹쳐 있기도 한다. 큰 구덩이의 대부분은 운석(隕石)이 빠른 속도로 달표면과 부딪쳐 생겨난 것이다. 그러나 지름이 1㎞이하인 작은 구덩이는 화산폭발로 생겨났을 수 있다. 둘레에 고리가 있는 구덩이도 많이 있으며, 이같은 고리는 일반적으로 주변보다 약 1.5㎞ 정도 높이 솟아 있지만 때때로 높이가 꽤 낮은 경우도 있다. 대부분의 경우 구덩이 안에는 하나의 중앙 봉우리나 여러 개의 봉우리가 있다. 바다로 알려진 달의 어두운 지역에는 구덩이가 상대적으로 적다. 이들 바다는 대부분의 구덩이가 생겨난 뒤에 거대한 용암류가 흘러들어간 지역일 것이라고 생각되고 있다. 또다른 중요한 지형은 열구(rille)로서, 이는 수백㎞까지 뻗어 있는 골이 깊은 도랑이다. 이들 열구는 바다나 큰 구덩이의 경계를 이루는 산맥이나 언덕에 나란히 무리를 지어 있는 경향이 있다. 어떤 것은 구덩이 벽을 가로질러 지나기도 한다.

달의 기원에 대한 이론은 여러 가지가 있다. 19세기말 영국의 천문학자 조지 다윈 경이 내놓은 가설은 수십 년 동안 상당한 관심을 끌었다. 태양조석(太陽潮汐)에 관한 수학이론을 바탕으로, 그는 달이 처음에는 지구의 일부분이었다가 조석작용으로 지구에서 떨어져나가 점점 멀어졌을 것이라고 했다. 그러나 1930년 해럴드 제프리스 경은 그와 같은 과정이 일어날 가능성은 거의 없다는 것을 설득력있게 보여주었다. 1950년대에 나와 널리 퍼진 달의 기원에 관한 또 하나의 이론은 달이 태양계의 다른 어떤 곳에서 생겨나 나중에 지구의 인력에 붙들렸을 것이라고 제안했다. 그뒤 이 이론의 바탕이 된 기본가설이 물리학적으로 있을 법하지 않다는 것이 밝혀져 자취를 감추게 되었다.

오늘날 대부분의 학자들은 태양계의 기원에 대해 응결설(凝結說)을 확장시킨 것을 받아들이고 있다. 이 이론에 따르면 지구는 티끌, 유성체(遊星體), 비교적 큰 소행성 등의 무리에서 물질이 유입되어 생겨났다. 반면에 달은 지구 주변에 남은 부스러기 물질이 응결되어 이루어졌으며, 달이 커지면서 지구에 흡수되지 않았다. 지구 주변에 남은 이들 부스러기 물질은 태양계가 생겨난 초기에 태양과 성분이 비슷한 물질 가운데 비휘발성(非揮發性) 원소가 모여 생겨난 것으로 보고 있다. 이 가운데 일부가 녹아 규산염물질에서 철-니켈로 이루어진 단단한 물체가 분리되었다. 이런 중금속 부스러기들이 유입되어 지구가 되었고, 반면 갓태어난 행성 주변궤도에 있던 암석질 물체가 응결되어 달이 생겨났다.


  • 작은 망원경으로 시작하는 천체관측의 첫걸음 : J. 머든, 박승철 역, 가람기획, 1993
  • 지구라는 행성 : 최진범 외, 춘광, 1993
  • 우리가 정말 알아야 할 우리 태양계 : 이향순, 현암사, 1992
  • 재미있는 천체이야기 : 미야모토 쇼우타로오, 한성희 역, 예문당, 1992
  • 재미있는 달 이야기 : A. 리버, 박희준 역, 책세상, 1991
  • 아시모프의 천문학 : I. 아시모프, 최승언 역, 웅진출판사, 1991
  • 재미있는 우주여행 : 이향순, 스포츠서울, 1991
  • 신비의 우주 : 조경철, 대원사, 1990
  • 우주탐험의 미래 : R. 래스트로, 이상각 역, 을유문화사, 1990
  • 천문학 및 천체물리학서론 : 엘스케 P. 스미드·케네드 C. 제이컵스 공저, 유경로 외 역, 대한교과서주식회사, 1989
  • 새천문학 : 나일성, 정음사, 1987
  • Astronomical Observations:An Optical Perspective : G. Walker, 1987
  • The Moon Book : B.M. French, 1977
  • Lunar Geology : G. Fielder, 1965



내용을 인용하시려면 인용 부분에 다음과 같은 주를 달아야 합니다.
"달" 한국 브리태니커 온라인
<http://members.britannica.co.kr/bol/topic.asp?article_id=b04d2191a>
[2006. 2. 28자 기사]

COPYRIGHT (C)한국브리태니커회사, 1999-2006

 

moon (LACK PURPOSE)    /mu:n/ verb [I usually + adverb or preposition]
to move or spend time in a way which shows a lack of interest and no clear purpose:
She was mooning about/around the house all weekend.
He's been mooning over (= looking foolishly at) those holiday photos all afternoon
.

"full "moon noun [S] 보름달,만월
the moon when it is shaped like a complete disc, or a time when it is:
There's a full moon tonight.

half-moon    /%hA:f"mu:n/  /%h{f-/ noun [C usually singular]
(something shaped like) the moon when only half of the surface facing the Earth is lit by light from the sun

new "moon noun [C usually singular; U] 샛별
the moon when it is shaped like a crescent, or a time when it is shaped like this:
It was dark now and the sliver of a new moon could be seen overhead.
The team discovered that the planet is celcius 0.02  warmer at full moon than at new moon.

the moon (PLANET) noun
 1 [S] the round object which moves in the sky around the Earth and can be seen at night:
What time does the moon rise/set (= appear/disappear in the sky)?

 2 [U] the shape made by the amount of the moon that you can see at a particular time:
There's no moon (= You cannot see the moon) tonight.
a crescent/full/new moon

 3 [C] a similar round object that moves around another planet:
Jupiter has at least sixteen moons.
.

many moons ago OLD-FASHIONED
a long time ago

Thesaurus


asteroid noun [C]
one of many rocky objects, varying in width from over 900 kilometres to less than one kilometre, which circle the sun

asteroid

1【천문】 소행성(planetoid) 《화성과 목성의 궤도 사이의》
2【동물】 불가사리(starfish)

astral (STARS) adjective
relating to the stars or outer space

 

astro- prefix
relating to space, the planets, stars or other objects in space, or to a structure in the shape of a star:

astrology
astronaut

astronomical (SCIENTIFIC) adjective [before noun]
connected with astronomy:
the Royal Astronomical Society
astronomical observations/instruments

 

astronomically adverb
The satellite will observe objects that are particularly interesting astronomically.

 

astronomy noun [U]
the scientific study of the universe and of objects which exist naturally in space, such as the moon, the sun, planets and stars

 

astronomer noun [C]

 

astrophysics noun [U]
the type of astronomy which uses physical laws and ideas to explain the behaviour of the stars and other objects in space

 

astrophysical adjective

 

astrophysicist noun [C]

 

black hole noun [C]
1 SPECIALIZED a region in space where gravity is so strong that nothing, not even light, can escape

 

celestial adjective FORMAL
of or from the sky or outside this world:
The moon is a celestial body.

  하늘의;천체의(cf. TERRESTRIAL)
2 천국의[같은], 거룩한(divine)
3 천측 항법(航法)의
4 [Celestial] (옛날의) 중국(인)의(Chinese)
5 하늘빛의

comet noun [C]
an object that moves around the sun, usually at a great distance from it, that is seen only rarely from Earth as a bright line in the sky

com·et

〔Gk 「긴 머리털의 (별)」의 뜻에서〕 n.【천문】 혜성;《비유》 돌연히 두각을 나타내고 바로 사라져 버리는 사람

core (CENTRE) noun [C]
2 the centre of a planet:
The earth's core is a hot, molten mix of iron and nickel.

 

corona noun [C usually singular] plural coronas or coronae
a circle of light that can sometimes be seen around the moon at night, or around the sun during an eclipse (= a situation when the moon is positioned exactly between the sun and the Earth)

1【천문】 코로나, 광관(光冠)
2【기상】 (해·달) 무리, 광환(光環)
3 (교회 천장에 달아맨) 원형 촛대
4【건축】 처마 장식의 중층부(中層部);【해부】 관(冠)(crown) 《치관(齒冠)·체관(體冠) 등》;【식물】 부관(副冠), 덧꽃부리;【전기】 =CORONA DISCHARGE

 

eclipse (SIGHT) noun [C]
when the sun disappears from view, either completely or partly, while the moon is moving between it and the Earth, or when the moon darkens while the shadow (= darkness) of the Earth moves over it:
a solar/lunar eclipse
On Wednesday there will be a total/partial eclipse of the sun.

 

eclipse verb [T]
to make an eclipse of the moon or sun:
The moon will be totally eclipsed at 12.10 pm.

 

equinox noun [C]
either of the two occasions in the year when day and night are of equal length:
the vernal/autumn equinox

e·qui·nox
, 〔L 「똑같은 밤」의 뜻에서〕 n. 주야 평분시, 춘[추]분;【천문】 분점(分點)

extraterrestrial adjective
(coming from) outside the planet Earth:
extraterrestrial beings

ex·tra·ter·res·tri·al

 a. 지구 밖의, 지구 대기권 밖의
n. 지구 밖의 생물, 우주인 《略 ET》

 

falling star noun [C]
INFORMAL FOR meteor

 

galactic adjective
relating to the Galaxy or other galaxies:
inter-galactic travel

 

heavenly body noun [C]
any object existing in space, especially a planet, star, or the moon

 

intergalactic adjective [before noun]
between galaxies (= large groups of stars and other matter):
intergalactic space

 

interplanetary adjective [before noun]
between planets:
interplanetary space

 

interstellar adjective [before noun]
between the stars:
interstellar space

 

lunar adjective
of or relating to the moon:
the lunar surface

 

map noun [C]
3 something which shows the position of stars in the sky or the features on the surface of planets:
a celestial map
a map of Mars

 

Martian adjective

 

meteor noun [C] SPECIALIZED
a piece of rock or other matter from space that produces a bright light as it travels through the Earth's atmosphere
1【천문】 유성(falling star);유성체;운석
2 《비유》 화려하게 나타났다가 덧없이 사라지는 것
3 (번개·무지개·눈 등의) 대기(大氣) 현상

See also shooting star; falling star.

 

meteoric adjective
1 relating to or caused by a meteor:
The sudden flash of light in the night sky was caused by a meteoric fireball.

 

meteorite noun [C]
a piece of rock or other matter from space that has landed on Earth

【지질】 운석
2【천문】 유성체

the midnight sun noun [S]
the sun when seen in the middle of the night in summer in the arctic or antarctic (= the parts of the world furthest to the north and the south)

m dnight s n
[the midnightsun] 【기상】 (극권 내에서 한여름에 볼 수 있는) 한밤중의 태양

 

midwinter noun [U]
2 the winter solstice, the particular day of the year on which it is light for the shortest period of time (22 December in northern parts of the world, 21 June in southern parts of the world):
They celebrate midwinter by lighting candles.

1 한겨울, 엄동
2 동지 무렵

 

nebula noun [C] plural nebulae or nebulas SPECIALIZED
a cloud of gas or dust in space, appearing either bright or dark

1【천문】 성운(星雲), 성무(星霧)
2【병리】 각막예(角膜 )[백탁]

nebular adjective SPECIALIZED

 

observatory noun [C]
a building from which scientists can watch the planets, the stars, the weather, etc.

 

orbit noun [C or U]
the curved path through which objects in space move around a planet or star:
The satellite is now in a stable orbit.

1【천문】 궤도
2 생활의 궤도, 활동 범위;(인생) 행로, 생활 과정;세력권[범위]
3【해부】 안와(眼窩)(eye socket);【동물】 안구공(眼球孔);눈
4【물리】 (원자핵 주위를 도는) 전자 궤도

Once in space, the spacecraft will go into orbit around the Earth.

orbit verb [I or T]
to follow a curved path around a planet or star:
On this mission the Shuttle will orbit (the Earth) at a height of several hundred miles.

 

orbital adjective
an orbital space station

 

phase noun [C] 우리말로 옮기면?
3 The phases of the moon are the regular changes in its shape as it appears to us on Earth.

 

planet noun [C]
an extremely large round mass of rock and metal, such as Earth, or of gas, such as Jupiter, which moves in a circular path around the Sun or another star:
the planet Earth/Venus
Might there be intelligent life on other planets?

 

planetary adjective
relating to planets:
planetary science/motion
See also interplanetary.

 

planetarium noun [C] plural planetariums or planetaria
a building in which moving images of the sky at night are shown using a special machine

plan·e·tar·i·um

 n. (pl. planetariums, -i·a[ ]) 플라네타륨;별자리 투영기(投影機);천문관(館)

planetoid noun [C]
an asteroid

 

plasma (HOT SUBSTANCE) noun [U]
a very hot gas found, for example, inside the sun and other stars:
1【해부】 혈장(血漿), 임파장(淋巴漿)
2【생물】 원형질;유장(乳漿)(whey)
3【광물】 반투명의 녹옥수(綠玉髓)
4【물리)플라스마, 전리(電離) 기체 《원자핵과 전자가 분리된 가스 상태》

solar plasma
plasma physics

radio telescope noun [C]
a device for receiving, for scientific study, the electromagnetic waves sent out by objects in space such as stars

 전파 망원경

satellite noun [C]
2 a natural object moving round a larger object in space:
The moon is the satellite of the Earth.

 

sea noun
2 [C] one of the large flat areas on the moon which in the past were thought to be seas

우리말로?

 

set (SUN) verb [I] setting, set, set
(of the sun, moon or planets) to go down below the horizon (= the line at which the Earth seems to join the sky):
We sat on the beach and watched the sun set.
The setting sun cast long shadows across the lawn.

See also sunset (TIME); sunset (SKY).

 

shooting star noun [C]
INFORMAL FOR meteor

sidereal adjective [before noun] SPECIALIZED
of or calculated by the stars

 

sidereal time noun [U] SPECIALIZED
time based on the movement of the Earth in relation to the stars

항성시

solar adjective [before noun]
of or from the sun, or using the energy from the sun to produce electric power:
solar radiation
solar flares
a solar cell/panel
solar heating

 

the solar system noun [S]
the sun and the group of planets which move around it

 

solstice noun [C]
either of the two occasions in the year when the sun is directly above either the furthest point north or the furthest point south of the equator that it ever reaches. These are the times in the year, in the middle of the summer or winter, when there are the longest hours of day or night:
the summer/winter solstice
1【천문】 (태양의) 지점(至點) 《태양이 적도에서 북 또는 남으로 가장 멀어졌을 때》

Compare equinox.

 

starry adjective
See at star (OBJECT IN SPACE).

 

stellar adjective
1 of a star or stars:
a stellar explosion
stellar light

 

sunless adjective
See at sun (STAR).

 

vernal equinox noun [C usually singular]
the time in the spring when the sun crosses the equator, and when night and day are of equal length

【천문】 춘분;춘분점 《vernal point라고도 함》

wane verb [I]

1 작아[적어]지다;약해지다, 쇠약해지다, 감퇴하다;끝이 가까워지다
2 <달 등이> 이지러지다(opp. wax2)
1 (달의) 이지러짐
2 [the wane] 감소, 감퇴, 쇠미(衰微);쇠퇴기
3 종말, 끝장

2 FORMAL The moon wanes when it gradually appears less and less round, after the full moon.

 

wax (APPEAR LARGER) verb [I] FORMAL
When the moon waxes, it gradually appears larger and rounder each day.

1 커지다, 증대하다;<달이> 차다(opp. wane)
2 《고어·시어》 점점 …이 되다

1 (달의) 참

go down (SUN) phrasal verb
When the sun goes down, it moves down in the sky until it cannot be seen any more:
On summer evenings we would sit on the verandah and watch the sun go down.

 

moon:


in Spanish | in French | in Italian
in context | images


Adapted From: WordNet 2.0 Copyright 2003 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

moon
A noun
moon
  any natural satellite of a planet; "Jupiter has sixteen moons"
Category Tree:
moon
  the natural satellite of the Earth; "the average distance to the moon is 384,400 kilometers"; "men first stepped on the moon in 1969"
Category Tree:
moon
  any object resembling a moon; "he made a moon lamp that he used as a night light"; "the clock had a moon that showed various phases"
Category Tree:
Moon, Sun Myung Moon
  United States religious leader (born in Korea) who founded the Unification Church in 1954; was found guilty of conspiracy to evade taxes (born in 1920)
Category Tree:
moonlight, moonshine, moon
  the light of the moon; "moonlight is the smuggler's enemy"; "the moon was bright enough to read by"
Category Tree:
lunar month, moon, lunation, synodic month
  the period between successive new moons (29.531 days)
Category Tree:
B verb
moon
  expose one's buttocks to; "moon the audience"
Category Tree:
moon, moon around, moon on
  be idle in a listless or dreamy way
Category Tree:
daydream, moon
  have dreamlike musings or fantasies while awake; "She looked out the window, daydreaming"
Category Tree:

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Moon

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search
For other moons in the solar system see natural satellite. For the astrological meaning of the Moon, see Solar system in astrology. For other uses see Moon (disambiguation).
Moon   Astronomical symbol of the Moon
 
The Moon as seen by an observer from Earth

The Moon as seen from Earth

Orbital characteristics
Semi-major axis 384,400 km
(0.0026 AU)
Orbital circumference 2,413,402 km
(0.016 AU)
Eccentricity 0.0554
Perigee 363,104 km
(0.0024 AU)
Apogee 405,696 km
(0.0027 AU)
Revolution period 27.321 66155 d
(27 d 7 h 43.2 min)
Synodic period 29.530 588 d
(29 d 12 h 44.0 min)
Avg. Orbital Speed 1.022 km/s
Max. Orbital Speed 1.082 km/s
Min. Orbital Speed 0.968 km/s
Inclination varies between
28.60° and 18.30°
(5.145 396° to ecliptic)
see below
Longitude of the
ascending node
125.08°
Argument of perigee 318.15°
Is a satellite of Earth
Physical characteristics
Equatorial diameter 3,476.2 km [1]
(0.273 Earths)
Polar diameter 3,472.0 km
(0.273 Earths)
Oblateness 0.0012[2]
Surface area 3.793×107 km2
(0.074 Earths)
Volume 2.1958×1010 km3
(0.020 Earths)
Mass 7.347 673×1022 kg
(0.0123 Earths)
Mean density 3,346.2 kg/m3
Equatorial gravity 1.622 m/s2,
(0.1654 gee)
Escape velocity 2.38 km/s
Rotation period 27.321 661 d
(synchronous)
Rotation velocity 16.655 km/h
(at the equator)
Axial tilt varies between
3.60° and 6.69°
(1.5424° to ecliptic)
see Orbit
Right ascension
of North pole
266.8577°
(17 h 47 min 26 s)
Declination 65.6411°
Albedo 0.12
Magnitude -12.74
Surface temp.
min mean max
40 K 250 K 396 K
Crust composition
Oxygen 43%
Silicon 21%
Aluminium 10%
Calcium 9%
Iron 9%
Magnesium 5%
Titanium 2%
Nickel 0.6%
Sodium 0.3%
Chromium 0.2%
Potassium 0.1%
Manganese 0.1%
Sulfur 0.1%
Phosphorus 500 ppm
Carbon 100 ppm
Nitrogen 100 ppm
Hydrogen 50 ppm
Helium 20 ppm
Atmospheric characteristics
Atmospheric pressure 3 × 10-13kPa
Helium 25%
Neon 25%
Hydrogen 23%
Argon 20%
Methane

Ammonia
Carbon dioxide

trace

The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It has no formal name other than "The Moon", although in English it is occasionally called Luna (Latin for moon), or Selene (Greek for moon), to distinguish it from the generic "moon" (natural satellites of other planets are also called moons). Its symbol is a crescent. The terms lunar, selene/seleno-, and -cynthion (from the Lunar deities Selene and Cynthia) refer to the Moon (aposelene, selenocentric, pericynthion, etc.).

The average distance from the Moon to the Earth is 384,403 kilometers (238,857 miles). The Moon's diameter is 3,476 kilometers (2,160 miles).

The first manmade object to land on the Moon was Luna 2 in 1959, the first photographs of the otherwise occluded far side of the Moon were made by Luna 3 that same year, and the first people to land on the Moon came aboard Apollo 11 in 1969.

Contents

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//

The two sides of the Moon

The far side is sometimes called the "dark side". In this case "dark" means "unknown and hidden", and not "lacking light" as might seem to be implied by the name; in fact the far side receives (on average) as much sunlight as the near side, but at opposite times. Spacecraft are cut off from direct radio communication with the Earth when on the far side of the Moon.

One distinguishing feature of the far side is its almost complete lack of maria (singular: mare), which are the dark albedo features.

90° W Near side
PIA00305 PIA00302
PIA00304 PIA00303
Far side 90° E

Orbit

The Moon makes a complete orbit about the Earth approximately once every 28 days. Each hour the Moon moves relative to the stars by an amount roughly equal to its angular diameter, or by about 0.5°. The Moon differs from most satellites of other planets in that its orbit is close to the plane of the ecliptic and not in the Earth's equatorial plane.

Several ways to consider a complete orbit are detailed in the table below, but the two most familiar are: the sidereal month being the time it takes to make a complete orbit with respect to the stars, about 27.3 days; and the synodic month being the time it takes to reach the same phase, about 29.5 days. These differ because in the meantime the Earth and Moon have both orbited some distance around the Sun.

The gravitational attraction that the Moon exerts on Earth is the cause of tides in the sea. The tidal flow period, but not the phase, is synchronized to the Moon's orbit around Earth. The tidal bulges on Earth, caused by the Moon's gravity, are carried ahead of the apparent position of the Moon by the Earth's rotation, in part because of the friction of the water as it slides over the ocean bottom and into or out of bays and estuaries. As a result, some of the Earth's rotational momentum is gradually being transferred to the Moon's orbital momentum, resulting in the Moon slowly receding from Earth at the rate of approximately 38 mm per year. At the same time the Earth's rotation is gradually slowing, the Earth's day thus lengthens by about 15 μs every year. A more detailed discussion follows in the section titled Earth & Moon.

The Moon is in synchronous rotation, meaning that it keeps the same face turned to the Earth at all times. This synchronous rotation is only true on average because the Moon's orbit has definite eccentricity. When the Moon is at its perigee, its rotation is slower than its orbital motion, and this allows us to see up to an extra eight degrees of longitude of its East (right) side. Conversely, when the Moon reaches its apogee, its rotation is faster than its orbital motion and reveals another eight degrees of longitude of its West (left) side. This is called longitudinal libration.

Because the lunar orbit is also inclined to the Earth's equator, the Moon seems to oscillate up and down (as a person's head does when nodding) as it moves in celestial latitude (declination). This is called latitudinal libration and reveals the Moon's polar zones over about seven degrees of latitude. Finally, because the Moon is only at about 60 Earth radii distance, an observer at the equator who observes the Moon throughout the night moves by an Earth diameter sideways. This is diurnal libration and reveals about one degree's worth of lunar longitude.

Earth and Moon orbit about their barycenter, or common center of mass, which lies about 4700 km from Earth's center (about 3/4 of the way to the surface). Since the barycenter is located below the Earth's surface, Earth's motion is more commonly described as a "wobble". When viewed from Earth's North pole, Earth and Moon rotate counter-clockwise about their axes; the Moon orbits Earth counter-clockwise and Earth orbits the Sun counter-clockwise.

It may seem strange that the inclination of the lunar orbit and the tilt of the Moon's axis of rotation are listed as varying considerably. one must be reminded here that the orbital inclination is measured with respect to the primary's equatorial plane (in this case the Earth's), and that the axis of rotation's tilt is measured with respect to the normal to the satellite's orbital plane (the Moon's). For most planetary satellites, but not for the Moon, these conventions model physical reality and the values are therefore stable.

The plane of the lunar orbit maintains an inclination of 5.145 396° with respect to the ecliptic (the orbital plane of the Earth around the Sun), and the lunar axis of rotation maintains an inclination of 1.5424° with respect to the normal to that same plane. The lunar orbital plane precesses quickly (i.e. its intersection with the ecliptic rotates clockwise), in 6793.5 days (18.5996 years), mostly because of the gravitational perturbation induced by the Sun. During that period, the lunar orbital plane thus sees its inclination with respect to the Earth's equator (itself inclined 23.45° to the ecliptic) vary between 23.45° + 5.15° = 28.60° and 23.45° - 5.15° = 18.30°. Simultaneously, the axis of lunar rotation sees its tilt with respect to the Moon's orbital plane vary between 5.15° + 1.54° = 6.69° and 5.15° - 1.54° = 3.60°. Note that the Earth's tilt reacts to this process and itself varies by 0.002 56° on either side of its mean value; this is called nutation.

The points where the Moon's orbit crosses the ecliptic are called the "lunar nodes": the North (or ascending) node is where the Moon crosses to the North of the ecliptic; the South (or descending) node where it crosses to the South. Solar eclipses occur when a node coincides with the new Moon; lunar eclipses when a node coincides with the full Moon.

Roughly once every 18.6 years, the declination of the Moon reaches a maximum, which is called the lunar standstill.

The Moon's periods
Name Value (d) Definition
sidereal 27.321 66155 With respect to the distant stars (13.369 passes per year)
synodic 29.530 588 With respect to the Sun (phases of the Moon, 12.369 cycles per year)
tropical 27.321 582 With respect to the vernal point (precesses in ~26,000 a)
anomalistic 27.554 550 With respect to the perigee (recesses in 3232.6 d = 8.8504 a)
draconitic (nodical) 27.212 220 With respect to the ascending node (precesses in 6793.5 d = 18.5996 a)
Other properties of the Moon's orbit
Name Value (d)
Metonic cycle (repeat phase/day) 19×365 d
Semi-major axis ~384 403 km
Distance at perigee ~364 397 km
Distance at apogee ~406 731 km
Mean eccentricity 0.0549003
Period of precession of nodes 18.5996 a
Period of recession of line of apsides 8.8504 a
Eclipse year 346.621 d
Saros cycle (repeat eclipses) 18.030 a
Mean inclination of orbit to ecliptic 5° 9'
Mean inclination of lunar equator to ecliptic 1° 32'
The Moon orbiting Earth, sizes and distances to scale.
The Moon orbiting Earth, sizes and distances to scale.

Earth & Moon

Tidal Effects

Stop! The factual accuracy of this section is disputed.

The tides on Earth are mostly generated by the Moon's gravitation, with a less significant contribution by the Sun. These gravitational effects are specifically manifested as tidal forces. The combination of the two is responsible for spring and neap tides. Two tidal bulges, one in the direction of the Moon, and one in the opposite direction (figure 1) form as a result of the tidal forces. The buildup of these bulges and their movement around the earth causes an energy loss due to friction. The energy loss decreases the rotational energy of the Earth.

Since the Earth spins faster than the Moon moves around it, the tidal bulges are dragged along with the Earth's surface faster than the Moon moves, and move "in front of the Moon" (figure 2). Because of this, the Earth's gravitational pull on the Moon has a component in the Moon's "forward" direction with respect to its orbit. This component of the gravitational forces between the two bodies acts like a torque on the Earth's rotation, and transfers angular momentum and rotational energy from the Earth's spin to the Moon's orbital movement.

 Galileo spacecraft took this picture of the Earth-moon system
Enlarge
Galileo spacecraft took this picture of the Earth-moon system
Lunar libration
Enlarge
Lunar libration

Because the Moon is accelerated in forward direction, it moves to a higher orbit. As a result, the distance between the Earth and Moon increases, and the Earth's spin slows down (figure 3). Measurements reveal that the Moon's distance to the Earth increases by 38 mm per year (lunar laser ranging experiments with laser reflectors are used to determine this). Atomic clocks also show that the Earth's day lengthens by about 15 microseconds (μs) every year.

However, the formation of tidal bulges on Earth is irregular and not directly related to the frictional energy loss which accompanies the tides. For example, continents on Earth may cause an increase in frictional energy losses and hamper the buildup of tidal bulges (figure 4).

The energy loss of the Earth's spin due to the loss of rotational energy of the Earth is related to both the energy transfer to the Moon, which depends on the geometry of the mass distributions on Earth, causing a gravity component which pulls the Moon forward, and also to frictional losses, which depends on the properties of the material moving around within tides. The transfer of angular momentum to the Moon's orbit, in contrast, depends only on the geometry of the mass distribution. In general, the angular momentum transferred to the Moon will not correspond to an equivalent energy transfer. There will be a surplus or a deficit in the transfer of angular momentum to the Moon, compared to the energy transfer (figure 5).

Since both angular momentum and energy are conserved, there must be a mechanism on earth to store a surplus or a deficit of angular momentum. Candidates for this mechanism are the Earth's magnetic field and internal material currents of the Earth (figure 6).

The lunar surface is also subjected to tides from earth, and rises and falls by around 10 cm over 27 days. The lunar tides comprise a mobile component, due to the Sun, and a selenographically fixed one, due to Earth (the Moon keeps the same face turned to the Earth, but not to the Sun). The vertical motion of the Earth-induced component comes entirely from the Moon's orbital eccentricity; if the Moon's orbit were perfectly circular, there would be solar tides only. The magnitude of the Moon's tides corresponds to a Love number of 0.0266, and supports the idea of a partially melted zone around its core. Moonquake waves lose energy below 1000 km depth, and this may also show that the deep material is at least partially melted. The Earth’s Love number is 0.3, corresponding to a movement of 0.5 metres per day; for Venus the Love number is also 0.3. (Source: Patrick Moore, The Data Book of Astronomy - June 2003 Updates)

Double-planet hypotheses

Several characteristics of the Earth-Moon system distinguish it from the satellite systems of most other planets in the Solar System, including the unusually large relative size of the Moon, its great orbital distance from Earth, and the fact that the Moon's path around the Sun is always concave to that star, like that of the Earth (but unlike that of most other satellites in the Solar System). As a result, some observers hold that the Earth-Moon system is a double planet rather than a planet with a satellite. For more information on these alternative views, see the Double planet article.

Origin and history

The Moon, as seen in X-ray light.
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The Moon, as seen in X-ray light.
The Moon during Earthshine
Enlarge
The Moon during Earthshine

The inclination of the Moon's orbit makes it implausible that the Moon formed along with the Earth or was captured later; its origin is the subject of some scientific debate.

Early speculation proposed that the Moon broke off from the Earth's crust due to centrifugal force, leaving an ocean basin (presumed to be the Pacific) behind as a scar. This concept requires too great an initial spin of the Earth and the presumption of a Pacific origin is not compatible with the geological standard model, the theory of plate tectonics. Others speculated the Moon formed elsewhere and was captured into its orbit. Two of the other theories include the coformation or condensation theory and the impact theory, which speculates that the Moon formed from the debris that resulted from a collision between the early Earth and a planetesimal.

The Coformation or Condensation hypothesis posits that the Earth and the Moon formed together at about the same time from the primordial accretion disk, the Moon forming from material surrounding the coalescing proto-Earth, similar to the way the planets formed around the Sun. Some suggest that this hypothesis fails to adequately explain the depletion of iron in the Moon.

Recently, the giant impact hypothesis has been considered a more viable scientific theory for the moon's origin than the coformation or condensation theory. The Giant Impact theory holds that the Moon formed from the ejecta resulting from a collision between a very early, semi-molten Earth and a planet-like object the size of Mars, which has been referred to as Theia or Orpheus. The material ejected from this impact would have gathered in orbit around earth and formed the moon. This hypothesis is bolstered by two main observations: First, the composition of the moon resembles that of the earth crust, whereas it has relatively few heavy elements that would have been present if it formed by itself out of the same material from which earth formed. Second, through radiometric dating, it has been determined that the moon's crust formed between 20 and 30 million years after that of the earth, despite its smallness and associated larger loss of internal heat.

The geological epochs of the Moon are defined based on the dating of various significant impact events in the Moon's history. Analysis of craters and Moon rocks show that there was a late heavy bombardment by asteroids around the period 4.0 to 3.8 billion years ago.

Tidal forces deformed the once molten Moon into an ellipsoid, with the major axis pointed towards Earth.

In 2005, a team of scientists from Germany, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland measured the Moon's age at 4.527 ± 0.010 billion years, which would imply that it was formed only 30?50 million years after the origin of the solar system (Klein et al., 2005).


Physical characteristics

Main article: Geology of the Moon

Composition

More than 4.5 billion years ago, the surface of the Moon was a liquid magma ocean. Scientists think that one component of lunar rocks, KREEP (K-potassium, Rare Earth Elements, and P-phosphorus), represents the last chemical remnant of that magma ocean. KREEP is actually a composite of what scientists term "incompatible elements": those which cannot fit into a crystal structure and thus were left behind, floating to the surface of the magma. For researchers, KREEP is a convenient tracer, useful for reporting the story of the volcanic history of the lunar crust and chronicling the frequency of impacts by comets and other celestial bodies.

The lunar crust is composed of a variety of primary elements, including uranium, thorium, potassium, oxygen, silicon, magnesium, iron, titanium, calcium, aluminium and hydrogen. When bombarded by cosmic rays, each element bounces back into space its own radiation, in the form of gamma rays. Some elements, such as uranium, thorium and potassium, are radioactive and emit gamma rays on their own. However, regardless of what causes them, gamma rays for each element are all different from one another ? each produces a unique spectral "signature", detectable by a spectrometer.

A complete global mapping of the Moon for the abundance of these elements has never been performed. However, some spacecraft have done so for portions of the Moon; Galileo did so when it flew by the Moon in 1992. [3] The overall composition of the Moon is believed to be similar to that of the upper parts of the Earth other than a depletion of volatile elements and of iron.

Selenography

Lunar crater Daedalus. NASA photo.
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Lunar crater Daedalus. NASA photo.

When observed with earth based telescopes, the moon can be seen to have some 30,000 craters having a diameter of at least 1 kilometers, but close up observation from lunar orbit reveals a multitude of ever smaller craters. Most are hundreds of millions or billions of years old; the lack of atmosphere or weather or recent geological processes ensures that most of them remain permanently preserved. In the lunar terrae, it is indeed impossible to add a crater of any size without obliterating another; this is termed saturation.

The largest crater on the Moon, and indeed the largest known crater within the solar system, forms the South Pole-Aitken basin. This crater is located on the far side, near the south pole, and is some 2,240 km in diameter, and 13 km in depth.

The dark and relatively featureless lunar plains are called maria, Latin for seas, since they were believed by ancient astronomers to be water-filled seas. They are actually vast ancient basaltic lava flows that filled the basins of large impact craters. The lighter-colored highlands are called terrae. Maria are found almost exclusively on the Lunar nearside, with the Lunar farside having only a few scattered patches.

Blanketed atop the Moon's crust is a dusty outer rock layer called regolith, the result of rocks shattered by billions of years of impacts. Both the crust and regolith are unevenly distributed over the entire Moon. The crust ranges from 60 km (38 mi) on the near side to 100 km (63 mi) on the far side. The regolith varies from 3 to 5 m (10 to 16 ft) in the maria to 10 to 20 m (33 to 66 ft) in the highlands.

In 2004, a team led by Dr. Ben Bussey of Johns Hopkins University using images taken by the Clementine mission determined that four mountainous regions on the rim of the 73 km wide Peary crater at the Moon's north pole appeared to remain illuminated for the entire Lunar day. These unnamed "mountains of eternal light" are possible due to the Moon's extremely small axial tilt, which also gives rise to permanent shadow at the bottoms of many polar craters. No similar regions of eternal light exist at the less-mountainous south pole, although the rim of Shackleton crater is illuminated for 80% of the lunar day. Clementine's images were taken during the northern Lunar hemisphere's summer season, and it remains unknown whether these four mountains are shaded at any point during their local winter season.

Presence of water

Over time, comets and meteorites continuously bombard the Moon. Many of these objects are water-rich. Energy from sunlight splits much of this water into its constituent elements hydrogen and oxygen, both of which usually fly off into space immediately. However, it has been hypothesized that significant traces of water remain on the Moon, either on the surface, or embedded within the crust. The results of the Clementine mission suggested that small, frozen pockets of water ice (remnants of water-rich comet impacts) may be embedded unmelted in the permanently shadowed regions of the lunar crust. Although the pockets are thought to be small, the overall amount of water was suggested to be quite significant ? 1 km³.

Some water molecules, however, may have literally hopped along the surface and become trapped inside craters at the lunar poles. Due to the very slight "tilt" of the Moon's axis, only 1.5°, some of these deep craters never receive any light from the Sun ? they are permanently shadowed. Clementine has mapped ([4]) craters at the lunar south pole ([5]) which are shadowed in this way. It is in such craters that scientists expect to find frozen water if it is there at all. If found, water ice could be mined and then split into hydrogen and oxygen by solar panel-equipped electric power stations or a nuclear generator. The presence of usable quantities of water on the Moon would be an important factor in rendering lunar habitation cost-effective, since transporting water (or hydrogen and oxygen) from Earth would be prohibitively expensive.

This unusual image shows the Moon's shadow as seen in muons by the Soudan 2 detector 700 meters underground. The slight deviation of the shadow from the actual location of the Moon (denoted by the cross) is doubly fascinating; and is the result of Earth's magnetic field twisting the shadow because cosmic rays are charged particles.
Enlarge
This unusual image shows the Moon's shadow as seen in muons by the Soudan 2 detector 700 meters underground. The slight deviation of the shadow from the actual location of the Moon (denoted by the cross) is doubly fascinating; and is the result of Earth's magnetic field twisting the shadow because cosmic rays are charged particles.

The equatorial Moon rock collected by Apollo astronauts contained no traces of water. Neither the Lunar Prospector nor more recent surveys, such as those of the Smithsonian Institution, have found direct evidence of lunar water, ice, or water vapor. Lunar Prospector results, however, indicate the presence of hydrogen in the permanently shadowed regions, which could be in the form of water ice.

Magnetic field

Compared to that of Earth, the Moon has a very weak magnetic field. While some of the Moon's magnetism is thought to be intrinsic (such as a strip of the lunar crust called the Rima Sirsalis), collision with other celestial bodies might have imparted some of the Moon's magnetic properties. Indeed, a long-standing question in planetary science is whether an airless solar system body, such as the Moon, can obtain magnetism from impact processes such as comets and asteroids. Magnetic measurements can also supply information about the size and electrical conductivity of the lunar core ? evidence that will help scientists better understand the Moon's origins. For instance, if the core contains more magnetic elements (such as iron) than Earth, then the impact theory loses some credibility (although there are alternate explanations for why the lunar core might contain less iron).

Atmosphere

The Moon has a relatively insignificant and tenuous atmosphere. one source of this atmosphere is outgassing ? the release of gases, for instance radon, which originate deep within the Moon's interior. Another important source of gases is the solar wind, which is briefly captured by the Moon's gravity.

Eclipses

The angular diameters of the Moon and the Sun as seen from Earth overlap in their variation, so that both total and annular solar eclipses are possible. In a total eclipse, the Moon completely covers the disc of the Sun and the solar corona becomes visible to the naked eye.

Since the distance between the Moon and the Earth is very slightly increasing over time, the angular diameter of the Moon is decreasing. This means that several million years ago the Moon always completely covered the Sun on solar eclipses so that no annular eclipses occurred. Likewise, in several million years the Moon will no longer cover the Sun completely and no total eclipses will occur.

Eclipses happen only if Sun, Earth and Moon are lined up. Solar eclipses can only occur at new moon; lunar eclipses can only occur at full moon.

See also Solar eclipse and Lunar Eclipse.

Occultation of stars

The Moon is continuously blocking our view of the sky directly behind it. When a bright star or planet passes behind the Moon it is occulted or hidden from view. A solar eclipse is an occultation of the sun. Because the Moon is close to Earth, occultations of stars are not visible everywhere. Because of the moving nodes of the lunar orbit each year different stars are occulted.

Observation of the Moon

Moon surface. NASA photo.
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Moon surface. NASA photo.
Halo around moon
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Halo around moon

During the brightest full moons, the Moon can have an apparent magnitude of about ?12.6. For comparison, the Sun has an apparent magnitude of ?26.8.

The Moon appears larger when close to the horizon. This is a purely psychological effect (see Moon illusion). The angular diameter of the Moon from Earth is about one half of one degree, and is actually about 1.5% smaller when the Moon is near the horizon than when it is high in the sky (because it is further away by up to 1 Earth radius).

Various lighter and darker colored areas (primarily maria) create the patterns seen by different cultures as the Man in the Moon, the rabbit and the buffalo, amongst others. Craters and mountain chains are also prominent lunar features.

From any location on Earth, the highest altitude of the Moon on a day varies between the same limits as the Sun, and depends on season and lunar phase. For example, in winter the Moon is highest in the sky when it is full, and the full moon is highest in winter. The orientation of the Moon's crescent side also depends on the latitude of the observing site. Close to the equator an observer can see a boat Moon. [6]

Like the Sun, the Moon can also give rise to an optical effect known as a halo.

For more information on how the Moon appears in Earth's sky, see Lunar phase.

Exploration of the Moon

Apollo 12 lunar module prepares to descend towards the surface of the Moon. NASA photo.
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Apollo 12 lunar module prepares to descend towards the surface of the Moon. NASA photo.
Apollo 17 astronaut Harrison Schmitt standing next to boulder at Taurus-Littrow during third EVA (extravehicular activity). NASA photo.
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Apollo 17 astronaut Harrison Schmitt standing next to boulder at Taurus-Littrow during third EVA (extravehicular activity). NASA photo.

The first leap in Lunar observation was caused by the invention of the telescope. Especially Galileo Galilei made good use of this new instrument and observed mountains and craters on the Moon's surface.

The Cold War-inspired space race between the Soviet Union and the United States of America led to an acceleration. What was the next big step depends on the political viewpoint: In the US (and the West in general) the landing of the first humans on the moon in 1969 is seen as a culmination, indeed of the space race in general. on the other hand, many scientifically important steps, such as the first photographs of the until then unseen far side of the moon in 1959, were first achieved by the Soviet Union.

Landing map of Apollo, Surveyor and Luna missions
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Landing map of Apollo, Surveyor and Luna missions

The first man-made object to reach the Moon was the unmanned Soviet probe Luna 2, which made a hard landing on September 14, 1959, at 21:02:24 Z. The far side of the Moon was first photographed on October 7, 1959 by the Soviet probe Luna 3. Luna 9 was the first probe to soft land on the Moon and transmit pictures from the Lunar surface on February 3, 1966. It was proven that a lunar lander would not sink into a thick layer of dust, as had been feared. The first artificial satellite of the Moon was the Soviet probe Luna 10 (launched March 31, 1966). The first robot lunar rover to land on the Moon was the Soviet vessel Lunokhod 1 on November 17, 1970 as part of the Lunokhod program.

On December 24, 1968 the crew of Apollo 8, Frank Borman, James Lovell, and William Anders became the first human beings to see the far side of the Moon with their own eyes (as opposed to seeing it on a photograph). Humans first landed on the Moon on July 20, 1969. The first man to walk on the lunar surface was Neil Armstrong, commander of the American mission Apollo 11. The last man to stand on the Moon was Eugene Cernan, who as part of the mission Apollo 17 walked on the Moon in December 1972. See also: A full list of lunar astronauts.

Moon samples have been brought back to Earth by three Luna missions (nrs. 16, 20, and 24) and the Apollo missions 11 through 17 (minus Apollo 13, which aborted its planned lunar landing).

On January 14, 2004, US President George W. Bush called for a plan to return manned missions to the Moon by 2020. NASA's plan to accomplish that goal was announced on March 19, 2005, and was promptly dubbed Apollo 2.0 by critics.

The European Space Agency has plans to launch probes to explore the Moon in the near future, too. European spacecraft Smart 1 was launched September 27, 2003 and entered lunar orbit on November 15, 2004. It will survey the lunar environment and create an X-ray map of the Moon. [7] [8]

The People's Republic of China has expressed ambitious plans for exploring the Moon and is investigating the prospect of lunar mining, specifically looking for the isotope Helium-3 for use as an energy source on Earth [9]. As of December 2005, China has been making substantial progress in reaching this goal, with the unmanned orbiter and rocket entering production and testing. The craft is expected to launch in 2007, with the eventual plan to land astronauts (called "taikonauts" by the Chinese government) on the moon before 2020 [10]. Japan has two planned lunar missions, LUNAR-A and Selene; even a manned lunar base is planned by the Japanese Space Agency (JAXA). India will also try an unmanned orbiting satellite, called Chandrayaan.

From the mid-1960's to the mid-1970's there were 65 moon landings (with 10 in 1971 alone), but after Luna 24 in 1976 they suddenly stopped. The Soviet Union started focusing on Venus and space stations and the US on Mars and beyond. In 1990 Japan visited the moon with the Hiten spacecraft, becoming the third country to orbit the moon. The spacecraft released the Hagormo probe into lunar orbit, but the transmitter failed rendering the mission scientifically useless.

Human understanding of the Moon

Myth and folk culture

Main article: Moon (mythology)

The Moon as muse

Main article: Moon in art and literature

The moon has been the subject of many works of art and literature and the inspiration for countless others. It is a motif in the visual arts, the performing arts, poetry, prose and music.

Astrology

Main article: Moon (astrology)

In Western astrology The Moon is said to represent the feeling nature in of the individual. It is used to characterise the inner child within us, as well as the past and how we have been as individuals rather than how we are now. It is also used to represent the perception one has of one's mother, so someone with a Pisces Moon would be more likely to see their mother as a piscean type, even if in reality that was not the case. In the horoscope the aspects the moon makes with other planets and the transits the slower moving planets make to the moon are all said to have a strong impact on how our lives unfold.

Scientific understanding

A 5,000 year old rock carving at Knowth, Ireland may represent the Moon, which would be the earliest depiction discovered.

In many prehistoric and ancient cultures, the Moon was thought to be a deity or other supernatural phenomenon. Among the first in the Western world to offer a scientific explanation for the Moon was the Greek philosopher Anaxagoras, who reasoned that the Sun and Moon were both giant spherical rocks, and that the latter reflected the light of the former. His atheistic view of the heavens was one cause for his imprisonment and eventual exile.

By the Middle Ages, before the invention of the telescope, more and more people began to recognize the Moon as a sphere, though they believed that it was "perfectly smooth".

Tycho crater on the Moon. It is about 85 km across.
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Tycho crater on the Moon. It is about 85 km across.

In 1609, Galileo Galilei drew one of the first telescopic drawings of the Moon in his book Sidereus Nuncius and noted that it was not smooth but had craters. Later in the 17th century, Giovanni Battista Riccioli and Francesco Maria Grimaldi drew a map of the Moon and gave many craters the names they still have today.

The Moon as seen in gamma rays by the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory. Surprisingly, the Moon is actually brighter than the Sun at gamma ray wavelengths.
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The Moon as seen in gamma rays by the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory. Surprisingly, the Moon is actually brighter than the Sun at gamma ray wavelengths.

On maps, the dark parts of the Moon's surface were called maria (singular mare) or "seas", and the light parts were called terrae or continents. The possibility that the Moon could contain vegetation and be inhabited by "selenites" was seriously considered by some major astronomers even into the first decades of the 19th century.

In 1835, the Great Moon Hoax fooled some people into thinking that there were exotic animals living on the Moon. Almost at the same time however (during 1834?1836), Wilhelm Beer and Johann Heinrich Madler were publishing their fourth-volume Mappa Selenographica and the book Der Mond in 1837, which firmly established the conclusion that the Moon has no bodies of water nor any appreciable atmosphere.

There remained some controversy over whether features on the Moon could undergo changes. Some observers claimed that some small craters had appeared or disappeared, but in the 20th century it was determined that these claims were illusory, due to observing under different lighting conditions or due to the inadequacy of earlier drawings. It is however known that the phenomenon of outgassing occasionally occurs.

During the Nazi era in Germany, the Welteislehre theory, which claimed the Moon was made of solid ice, was promoted by Nazi leaders.

The far side of the Moon remained completely unknown until the Luna 3 probe was launched in 1959, and was extensively mapped by the Lunar Orbiter program in the 1960s.

From the 1950s through the 1990s, NASA aerodynamicist Dean Chapman and others advanced the "lunar origin" theory of tektites. Chapman used complex orbital computer models and extensive wind tunnel tests to support the theory that the so-called Australasian tektites originated from the Rosse ejecta ray of the large crater Tycho on the Moon's nearside. Until the Rosse ray is sampled, a lunar origin for these tektites cannot be ruled out.

In 1997 the asteroid 3753 Cruithne was found to have an unusual Earth-associated orbit, and has been dubbed by some to be a second "moon" of Earth. It is not considered a moon by astronomers, however, and its orbit is not stable in the long term.

Meteor impact on the Moon

An impact event was observed by NASA scientist Rob Suggs and astronomer Bill Cooke while testing out a new 10-in telescope and video camera they had assembled to monitor the moon for meteor strikes [11]. After consulting star charts they concluded that the impact body was probably part of the Taurid meteor shower. This may well be the first recording of this type of lunar event which some have claimed to have witnessed in the past. See [12].

Legal status

Though several flags of the Soviet Union and the United States have been symbolically planted on the moon, the Russian and U.S. governments make no claims to any part of the Moon's surface. Russia and the U.S. are party to the Outer Space Treaty, which places the Moon under the same jurisdiction as international waters (res communis). This treaty also restricts use of the Moon to peaceful purposes, explicitly banning weapons of mass destruction (including nuclear weapons) and military installations of any kind. A second treaty, the Moon Treaty, was proposed to restrict the exploitation of the Moon's resources by any single nation, but it has not been signed by any of the space-faring nations.

Several individuals have made claims to the Moon in whole or in part, though none of these claims are generally considered credible (see Moon for sale).

Satellites

Surface installations

Multiple scientific instruments were installed during the Apollo missions; some of them still function today. Among those were seismic detectors and reflecting mirrors for laser ranging.

Moon over cumulus clouds
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Moon over cumulus clouds
Moon over red and blue haze
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Moon over red and blue haze
Yellow moon over Hockessin, Delaware
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Yellow moon over Hockessin, Delaware

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See also

Lunar location listings

References

External links

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Moon phases

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Myth and folklore

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The Solar System
Planets: Mercury - Venus - Earth (Moon) - Mars - Jupiter - Saturn - Uranus - Neptune - Pluto
Other: Sun - Asteroid belt - Kuiper belt - Scattered disc - Oort cloud
See also astronomical objects and the solar system's list of objects, sorted by radius or mass.