1. The Moon
First Moon Landing 1969
Moon Video Clip

2. Space Exploration 1959—Soviet Luna spacecraft first encountered
the moon.
1969—Apollo Astronauts from the United States
landed on the moon.

3. Theories for the Origin of the Moon
Earth and moon formed simultaneously, with the moon in orbit around the earth.

4. Theories for the Origin of the Moon
Earth was spinning so fast that a chunk of it spun off into orbit.

5. Theories for the Origin of the Moon
The Moon formed elsewhere in the solar system and was captured by Earth’s gravitational field.

6. Theories for the Origin of the Moon
The moon formed about 4.6 billion years ago as a result of a collision between Earth and a planet-sized object.

8. Development of the Moon
Over the first ½ billion years of the moon’s life, the moon was constantly impacted with meteoroids and other planetary objects.

9. Development of the Moon
The frequent impacts melted the surface layers forming a huge “magma ocean.”
The crust cooled and hardened.

10. Development of the Moon
Additional impacts continued to gouge out craters and depressions on the moon’s surface; this formed the pitted surface that is seen today.

11. Impact Craters
Lunar craters are circular hollows on the moon’s surface formed after a meteoroid strikes.
The smallest craters are microscopic pits, but the largest are nearly 2100 kilometers across.

12. Impact Craters
Most craters are named after people from around the world including Einstein, Edison, Fermat, Scobee, and Copernicus.

14. Impact Craters Rays radiate from a number of craters.
Rays form from shattered rock and dust that were splashed out by the meteoroid that formed the crater.