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The Solar System

What is the Moon?

The Moon is the Earth's natural satellite.

The diameter of the moon is about ¼ that of the Earth.
It rotates about the Earth once in about 28 days.
It also spins on its axis once in this time and so
the same side of the moon is nearly always facing the Earth.

The surface temperature of the moon
varies between about 130°C and -170°C.
This large temperature range occurs because
the moon has almost no atmosphere to trap heat.

The moon has less gravity than the Earth because
it has less mass. At the moon's surface,
gravity is about one sixth as strong as it is on Earth.

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