9 Facts About The Moon

Here at Drawn Together Art, we love the moon! Not only is it beautiful, it is also fascinating, with its influence over earth, nature and maybe even human behaviour?

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9 Facts About the Moon

1. It is believed that the Moon was created from a collision between Earth and a Mars-sized object. The huge collision tore away some of the Earth and the debris from the collision formed our Moon.

2. The Moon always shows the same side to the Earth. The Earth and the Moon's rotations are in sync and that's why we only see one side of the Moon. This is know as synchronous rotation, or tidal locking.

3.  The rise and fall of tides on Earth is caused by the Moon’s gravitational pull. The Moon’s gravitational pull generates something called the tidal force. This force causes the water on Earth to bulge out on the side closest to the moon and also on the side farthest away from the moon. These bulges of water are high tides. 

4. The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite and it is the 5th largest moon (or satellite) in our solar system. Our moon is by far the largest moon relative to its planet’s size.

5. The Moon has a very small and thin atmosphere called an exosphere. It is not possible to for humans to breath though, that’s why a spacesuit is needed if you want to explore the moon!

6. For centuries the full Moon has been blamed for the change in people’s behaviour. Hence the word ‘lunacy’ stemming from the word ‘luna’ (from the Latin for ‘moonstruck’). Scientists throughout the ages have looked in to this phenomenon, with the majority of sound scientific studies finding no connection.

7. The tide can be more dramatic during a Full Moon. This is down to the pull of the Moon’s gravity. When the Earth, Moon and Sun align, which happens during a full and new Moon, the Sun and Moons gravitational pull line up, making them strong and thus, we have more dramatic tides.

8. Increased Birth Rate during a Full Moon? There have been reports that more babies are born closer to a Full Moon. Science-based studies have so far found no link, or reported inconclusive results. This myth is more likely to be rooted in folklore with many cultures of the world linking the cycle of the moon and women’s fertility. 

9. Increased Crime During a full Moon? In folklore, this was again referred to as lunacy when the full Moon was believed to affect mental state. However, studies have found this is more likely that more people are drawn out during the Full Moon because it is brighter, thus heightening the chances of crimes being committed…

Types of Moon

Super Moon - A Super Moon is a full moon that coincides with the closest that the Moon comes to the Earth in its orbit (this is called Perigee).  A super moon can appear 14% bigger and brighter than normal.

Blue Moon - This is the name for when a month has two full Moons. The second full moon in one calendar month is referred to as a Blue Moon. This is a rare event, hence the expression ‘Once in a Blue Moon’

Blood Moon - This occurs when the Moon is in total lunar eclipse. This eclipse causes the Moon to have a striking reddish appearance. A total lunar eclipse can last up to 2 hours and may be viewed from anywhere on the night side of Earth.

Super Blue Blood Moon - it’s a combination of a Super Moon, Blue Moon and Blood Moon. So the full Moon appears bigger, is the second in a month and has a reddish appearance due to the Lunar Eclipse. This is an extremely rare event with 150 years between the last two occurrences.

Moon Nick Names - Full Moon names were created to help track the seasons in ancient times. The nick name of the full moon was often a description relating to a particular activity or event that occurred during that month, like the Harvest Moon, Flower Moon or Snow Moon. The most well known moon names today originate from Native American tribes, but giving names to the full moons of the year has been common in many cultures throughout history.