ASTRONOMY COURSE - Vol 5 - THE MOON: Our natural satellite (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9798259266025)

Discover the Moon as you have never seen it before.

The Moon - Our Natural Satellite is the fifth volume of the Astronomy Course, a clear, well-structured, and accessible educational guide dedicated to the celestial body closest and most familiar to Earth.

This book takes the reader on a complete journey of discovery: from the Moon's violent origin to its internal structure, from lunar phases to eclipses, from tides to surface geology, and from telescopic observation to the great space missions of the past, present, and future.

With a rigorous yet simple style, this volume shows that the Moon is not merely the satellite that lights up our nights, but a world in its own right: a geological archive of the Solar System, a natural laboratory of celestial mechanics, and a possible base for the future human exploration of space. The book follows a progressive path, connecting the main lunar phenomena: orbit, rotation, phases, libration, geology, lunar water, regolith, Apollo exploration, Artemis missions, and the Chinese lunar program.

Ideal for students, astronomy enthusiasts, teachers, science communicators, and curious readers, this book offers a complete guide to truly understanding our cosmic neighbor.

In this volume you will find:

• the origin and formation of the Moon;
• the Earth-Moon system and its dynamics;
• lunar phases, eclipses, libration, perigee, and apogee;
• tides and the Moon's influence on Earth;
• landscapes, craters, maria, mountains, and lunar geology;
• water, regolith, and the physical environment of the surface;
• tips for observing the Moon from Earth;
• the history of lunar exploration;
• the future of the Moon with Artemis and the Chinese Chang'e program.

A rich yet introductory manual, designed to transform the Moon from a simple presence in the sky into a world to be known, observed, and understood.

The Moon is close, but far from simple. This book helps you look at it with new eyes.