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Chapter 10: Problem 3
Why does the sky look black on the Moon even during daytime?
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Describe the differences between the maria and the lunar highlands. Which kind of terrain covers more of the Moon's surface? Which kind of terrain is more heavily cratered? Which kind of terrain was formed later in the Moon's history? How do we know?
Why is it impossible for liquid water to exist on the surface of the Moon?
Use the Starry Night Enthusiast \({ }^{\mathrm{TM}}\) program to observe the apparent change in size of the Moon as seen from the surface of the Earth. Click the Home button in the toolbar. Stop the time flow by clicking the Stop time button (the button with a square icon in the Time Flow Rate section of the toolbar). Click each field of the Time and Date display pane in the toolbar and use the keyboard to set the time to \(12: 00: 00 \mathrm{~A} . \mathrm{M}\). and the date to \(\mathrm{O}\) tober 16,2006 . You can now set up the view of the Moon as if you were observing from a transparent Earth in continuous darkness. Open the Options pane by clicking its tab on the left border of the view window. In the Local View layer of the Options pane, uncheck the boxes beside the Daylight and Local Horizon options. Open the Find pane and click the menu button at the left of the entry for the Moon and select Magnify from the menu to display a stationary image of the magnified Moon in the center of the view. Notice the Moon's phase. (a) Select Options > Solar System > PlanetsMoons... from the menu. In the Planets-Moons dialog box, click the slide control next to the Show dark side label near the top of the window and adjust the control all the way to the right (Brighter) side of the scale. Then click the OK button to close the dialog box. Note that the image of the Moon now appears full because Starry Night Enthusiast TM has artificially brightened the dark side of the image of the Moon, effectively removing the appearance of the Moon's phases. (b) Use the + button in the Zoom section of the toolbar to adjust the field of view to about \(55^{\prime} \times 45^{\prime}\). Starry Night Enthusiast \({ }^{\mathrm{TM}}\) can display a reference field of view (FOV) upon this sky. Open the FOV pane by clicking its tab. Select the 30 Arcminutes option. Then click the FOV tab to close the pane. (c) The final view is of the Moon, its dark side artificially brightened, as it would be seen from your home location if the Earth were airless and transparent, surrounded by a yellow FOV circle 30 arcminutes in diameter. Note the size of the Moon relative to this reference circle. Set the Time Flow Rate in the toolbar to 1 minute. Run Time Forward for least 24 hours and observe the apparent size of the Moon relative to the reference circle. (c) Note that the apparent size of the Moon changes somewhat over the course of a day (of simulated time). Explain in terms of the Earth's rotation. (Hint: In this view, Starry Night Enthusiast \({ }^{\text {Tm }}\) has made the Earth transparent, so you can see objects that would normally be below the horizon. As the Earth rotates, your observing location on the surface is carried along and your distance from the Moon changes.) (d) Change the Time Flow Rate to 1 day and again click the Run Time Forward button. Does the apparent size of the Moon always stay the same, or does it vary? Explain what this tells you about the shape of the Moon's orbit.
What does it mean to say the Moon is a "one-plate world"? What is the evidence for this statement?
Comment on the idea that without the presence of the Moon in our sky, astronomy would have developed far more slowly.
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