Many people believe the Moon was formed about 4 and a half billion years ago when there was a giant impact between Earth and a Mars-sized body called Theia. Here is an illustration of what could have happened:
You may notice the third stage looks similar to Saturn’s rings. This is because Saturn, like Earth has a Moon, actually, multiple moons. There are at least sixty different moons around Saturn.
What Does The Moon Do For us on Earth?
There are many things the Moon does for us down here on Earth. Here are few things that would happen if the did not exist: To start off, the Earth would start to tilt because the Moon wouldn’t be there to keep the Earth in a steady orbit. This would cause the Sun to be hotter in some places that aren’t used to hot weather and colder in some places that are used to hotter weather. Also, the weather would be unpredictable, it would be drastically different on the hottest and coldest places on Earth. Some places might even be uninhabitable for humans. Another thing that would happen is that the seasons would change. For example, summer might feel like fall. The Moon also influences the tides. Without the moon, many small fish, crabs, mussels, etc. would die. This could travel up the food chain and eventually affect humans. This could cause problems and possible food shortages.
Above is a picture comparing the same beach at high tide and at low tide. If there was no Moon, then the water would always be like the picture on the left, low tide. As I previously mentioned, this would kill a lot of animals. In conclusion, the Moon is more than just be a distant object in the sky. It is very important for all of us on Earth.
What Is On The Moon?
There are rocks and sand on the moon. (There are also footprints and an American flag) The rocks are made up of basalt and other elements. On average the Moon rocks date back 3.16 billion years to 4.44 billion years ago. The sand is the rocks broken down into dust. One thing people think is that there is a small amount of water on the lunar surface. The theory says that if it is there it would be ice, not liquid water. I think it would be really cool if there was water on the Moon because then maybe we could invent a spaceship that runs on water and could refuel on the moon. That would be really cool!