Beyond Earth | Class 6 Science Notes

Natural Satellites and The Moon

Objects that move around planets are called satellites. Natural satellites, commonly known as moons, are smaller than planets. Earth has one natural satellite, the Moon, which is about 384,000 kilometers away. Mars has two moons, while Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune have many moons. The Moon takes about 27 days to complete one revolution around Earth. It is Earth's nearest neighbor in space. Unlike Earth, the Moon has almost no atmosphere, water, or life. The Moon's surface is covered with craters—circular bowl-like depressions formed by impacts of asteroids or space rocks. Because there is no atmosphere or water to erode these craters, they remain visible for a very long time. Humans have sent spacecraft to explore the Moon, including India's Chandrayaan missions. Chandrayaan-1 was launched in 2008, Chandrayaan-2 in 2019, and Chandrayaan-3 in 2023, which successfully landed near the Moon's south pole. India plans Chandrayaan-4 to bring back soil and rock samples. These missions have greatly enhanced our understanding of the Moon.

📊 Diagram: The Moon is about 3,84,000 km away from the Earth.; The Moon; (a) Image taken by Cartosat, ISRO.; (b) Close-up image by cameras onboard Chandrayaan-3, ISRO.

🔗 Connection: This section leads to information about other smaller objects in the Solar System such as asteroids and comets.