Luna Nostra Trivia Quiz

Answer: Titan (Saturn VI)

The Moon's diameter is 3,475 km (2,159 miles), making it the fifth largest natural satellite in the Solar System. That means (of course) that there are only four moons in the Solar System that have a larger diameter than our moon. They are:

#1 - Ganymede (Jupiter III) - 5,270 km (3,275 miles);
#2 - Titan (Saturn VI) - 5,152 km (3,201 miles);
#3 - Callisto (Jupiter IV) - 4,821 km (2,996 miles); and
#4 - Io (Jupiter I) - 3,636 km (2,259 miles).

Where do Europa, Triton and Titania sit on the list?

#6 - Europa (Jupiter II) - 3,160 km (1,964 miles);
#7 - Triton (Neptune I) - 2,700 km (1,678 miles); and
#8 - Titania (Uranus III) - 1,578 km (981 miles).

Answer: 27.321582 days

To break it down, 27.321582 days is equal to 27 days, 7 hours, 43 minutes and 6 seconds.

The orbit and rotation of the moon gave birth to the phrase 'the dark side of the moon' - it's the far side of the Moon that is always facing away from the Earth. It's not actually dark (except when we have a full moon) - it's just that it remained unknown to us until we could send a spacecraft to orbit the moon.

Answer: 29.530589 days

The synodic period of the Moon has figured much more prominently in history than its orbital period. The cycle of the moon has marked the passage of time and the seasons, has figured in various religions, and has been the source of signs and portents of various kinds.

The phases of the moon are:

1. New moon
2. Waxing crescent (right side of moon begins to reflect the Sun's light)
3. First quarter (or half moon - light on right half of moon)
4. Waxing gibbous
5. Full moon
6. Waning gibbous
7. Third quarter (or half moon - light on left half of moon)
8. Waning crescent
9. New moon

Answer: A spring tide

When the Moon and the Sun line up together, around the time of a new or a full moon, the larger tide effect is referred to as a 'spring tide'. When the Moon and the Sun are at 90 degrees to each other in relation to the Earth, the Sun has a bit of a negating effect on the Moon's effect, causing a lower-than-normal tide called a 'neap tide'.

Interestingly, when the moon's gravity pulls on the Earth's oceans, a similar 'bulge' happens on the opposite side of the globe. You can visualize it like squeezing an orange.

Answer: Galileo Galilei

Galileo's observations in the year 1609 were the first to prove that the Moon was more than just a smooth ball. He was able to determine the presence of craters and mountains by observing the terminator (the line separating day and night) and seeing irregularities instead of a simple, smooth line. He was even able to determine the (rough) height of some of the mountains.

Galileo lived from 1564 to 1642.

Answer: Yes

For a long time, everyone took it for granted that the Moon had no atmosphere and, when compared to other similar bodies in the Solar System, it has a very small amount of air. But it DOES have (a very negligible) atmosphere.

Argon, helium, sodium, potassium, and hydrogen have been detected to a level of roughly 80,000 atoms per cubic centimetre.

Answer: Selenography

Selenography as a science has been greatly improved since the advent of spaceflight, as you might imagine. Before, the study of the Moon was limited to what could be observed from Earth, thus also limiting selenography to the visible half of the Moon.

Most of the Moon has been mapped, with most significant features bearing names, although there are still areas of the Moon that do not have accurate measurements of depths or heights yet (mostly around the polar regions).

Answer: Aristarchus

Aristarchus of Samos lived between 310 and 230 BC and made a few other suppositions in his heliocentric model. He correctly placed the (known) planets in their proper positional order from the Sun, and he also surmised that the stars in the sky were also suns in their own accord.

The Aristarchus crater is located at 23.7°N, 47.4°W and is approximately 40 km (24.9 miles) in diameter, and extends 3.7 km (2.3 miles) down.

Answer: False

Mons Huygens (5,500 m high - 18,045 feet), named for Dutch astronomer Christiaan Huygens (1629-1695), can be found in the Montes Apenninus, a range which also skirts the edge of Mare Imbrium (to the southeast). Its coordinates are 20.0°N, 2.9°W. Montes Apenninus were named for the Apennine mountains of Italy.

Oddly enough, although Mons Huygens is the tallest mountain, it is not the highest point on the Moon. That belongs to an area that isn't qualified as a mountain, even though the elevation is 10,786 m (35,387 feet) above the mean radius. The 'slope' leading up to the point is only at a 3% grade.

Montes Archimedes, named for the Ancient Greek astronomer and scientist, is also located in the region of Mare Imbrium on a plateau on the eastern side.

Answer: Daedalus

Daedalus' coordinates are 5.9°S, 179.4°E. It has a diameter of 93 km (58 miles) and a depth of 3 km (1.9 miles). The crater was prominently featured in photographs taken by Apollo 11's Michael Collins in the command module Columbia while Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were on the Moon.