Overview
Early astronomers were limited to what they could see with their own eyes through the millennia they could observe the moon. Galileo saw craters and mountains on the moon during the 17th century, and astronomers after him charted many of its features. The space race between the United States and the Soviet Union began in the 1950s and continued until the first manned landing on the moon in 1969. More recent exploration has included missions by Japan, China, India, the European Union, Russia, the US, and private space agencies, with others planned for the future.
Early Astronomers
The earliest astronomers in the Babylonian Empire, India, and China charted lunar eclipses and showed that the moon shone by reflected light. Before telescopes were invented, some scientists believed that the moon was spherical. In the 16th century, Galileo observed mountains and craters through the telescope, and his drawings of the face of the moon were published.
Charting and Discoveries
Later in the 16th century, detailed maps of the moon were charted, craters were named, and the dark structures were called seas (singular mare), with names such as Sea of Tranquility, Ocean of Storms, and Sea of Nectar. They thought that the seas actually contained water, similar to seas on earth. It wasn’t until observations from more powerful telescopes in the 19th and 20th centuries that the moon was shown to be an airless, dry world.
The Space Race
The “space race” between the US and the Soviet Union began in the late 1950’s with the launch of the satellite Sputnik in 1957. Unmanned Soviet probes sent back photographs of the near and far side of the moon, landed in moon dust, and orbited the moon itself. However, the first astronaut to walk on the moon was Neil Armstrong of the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), July 20, 1969. Several more Apollo missions followed, along with lunar landers and rovers. Samples of moon rocks were brought back to earth so that scientists could study their composition and formation.
International Missions
Although most of the space attention for both the US and Russia shifted to the International Space Station and other missions, others sent spacecraft to the moon. In the 1990s, Japan put an unmanned craft in orbit around the moon. The European Union followed in 2004. India has had several successful flights, as has China. The US returned to the moon with a number of probes and surveys. Future missions are planned, including some spaceflights by private companies.
Interested in science tutoring services? Learn more about how we are assisting thousands of students each academic year.
SchoolTutoring Academy is the premier educational services company for K-12 and college students. We offer tutoring programs for students in K-12, AP classes, and college. To learn more about how we help parents and students in Pearl, MS: visit Tutoring in Pearl, MS