The Moon

The Moon is the celestial body that orbits the Earth. It has a mean radius of ~ 1737 km, a mean distance to Earth of ~ 385 thousand km and an orbital period of ~ 27.3 days. Earth’s satellite is thought to have formed approximately 4.5 billion years ago as a result of the impact between the proto-Earth and a celestial body called Theia, not long after the formation of the Solar System. The Moon has a differentiated structure and consists of a crust, mantle and core and its surface is scarred with many impact craters.

Information source: NASA

Image: Full Moon as seen from Earth. Credit: Gregory H. Revera, Wikimedia Commons.