How long does it take the Moon to orbit the Earth?
The Moon takes about 27 days (27 days, 7 hours, 43 minutes, 11.6 seconds) to go all the way around the Earth and return to its starting position.
The Moon's orbit around the Earth is a slightly squashed circle called an ellipse.
What is a Lunar Month?
A lunar month is the time the moon takes to pass through a complete cycle of its phases and is measured from New Moon to New Moon. A lunar month is about 29.5 days (29 days, 12 hours, 43 minutes, 11.6 seconds)
Why is a Lunar month (29.5 days) longer than the number of days it takes the Moon to orbit the Earth (27.3)?
Whilst the Moon is orbiting the Earth, the Earth is constantly moving because it is orbiting the sun. The Moon therefore travels slightly more than 360° to get from one new moon to the next. Thus the lunar month is longer
How old is the Moon?
The Moon is 4.5 billion years old.
Which direction does the Moon travel around the Earth?
Looking down from the north pole we would see the Moon orbiting counterclockwise from west to east.
Did you know?
The moon moves toward the east in our sky by
about 12 degrees each day.
The moon rises in the east and sets in the
west
How far is the Moon from
Earth?
The Moon is about 250,000 miles (384,400 kilometres) from Earth.
|
Travelling
by car:
Travelling by rocket: Travelling by light speed: |
130
days
13 hours 1.52 sec |
