Results of Tidal Forces
- Moon has maria on the near side and a thicker crust on the far
side.
- Earth rotation slowed down.
- But it is still a lot faster than Moon's orbital period.
- Tides are slowing it down even today.
- Moon rotation slowed down.
- Now it matches orbit period.
- Buldge stays pointing toward earth.
- Moon is speeding up.
- As it gets more energy it moves farther away.
ASTR 121 Home
Davison E. Soper, Institute of Theoretical Science,
University of Oregon, Eugene OR 97403 USA
soper@bovine.uoregon.edu