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David

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THE MOON: A Spaceflight Away - Questions and Answers

Moon

The side of the Moon that faces Earth.


Q. If you weighed 100 pounds (45 kilograms) on Earth, how much would you weigh on the Moon?
A. 16½ pounds (7½ kilograms).

Q. If you can jump 3 feet high (92 centimeters) on the Earth, how high could you jump on the Moon?
A. Just over 18 feet (about 5½ meters).

Q. How many times heavier is the Earth than the Moon?
A. 81 times.

Q. How many Moons would fit inside the Earth?
A. 49.

Q. How fast does the Moon travel in its path around the Earth?
A. 2,287 miles per hour (3,680 kilometers per hour).

Q. Which is the largest crater on the Moon?
A. The crater Bailly. It is 183 miles (295 kilometers) across.

Q. How long does it take radio signals to travel from the Earth to the Moon?
A. About 1¼ seconds. (Radio signals move at the speed of light – about 186,000 miles per second.)

Q. How many spacecraft have landed or crashed on the Moon?
A. At least 37 – 24 from the United States and 14 from Russia.

Q. How much did all the Moon rocks brought back by the Apollo astronauts weigh?
A. 842 pounds (382 kilograms).

Q. Who was the last person to walk on the Moon?
A. Apollo 17 astronaut Eugene Cernan.

Q. Is there such a thing as a "moonquake"?
A. Yes. Instruments left on the Moon's surface have recorded about 3,000 moonquakes per year.

 

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