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What would happen if the earth's orbit and the Moon's orbit were in the same plane?
Wiki User
∙ 9y ago
Life on Earth would be vastly different, if there were life at all. While the moon affects tides (to a greater extent than the Sun), this is not its only function. The moon, being over sized as it is, sweeps the sky for us. Had the moon not been in orbit around the Earth, most of the objects that have hit it, would have hit the planet instead. Many of these objects would have been devastating had they struck the planet.
Take for example the crater Tycho. Roughly 108 million years ago, something struck the moon with enough force to crack the crust (the rays that radiate outward are the evidence of this). Even considering the protection that earth's atmosphere offers, had the object that created Tycho come at the planet instead, enough of it would have made it through to still result in a sizable disaster.
Wiki User
∙ 11y ago
Wiki User
∙ 9y agoThat would mean that the Moon would always follow the ecliptic, and it would mean that we would have a lunar eclipse and a solar eclipse every lunar month. The solar eclipse would only be seen in and near the tropics at every New Moon, with maximum totality always on the Equator, and the lunar eclipse would happen at every Full Moon. Other than that the tides would be more or less the same, except that the variation in the height of spring tides could be less.
Wiki User
∙ 13y agoevery full moon would be a lunar eclipse and every new moon would be a solar eclipse.
But, only if its orbit were in the ecliptic plane.
Wiki User
∙ 12y agoIt would be impossible for the Moon to be in the centre of the Solar System. It does not have enough mass.
Wiki User
∙ 8y agoIn that case, it would pass both over the north pole and over the south pole.
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Is the direction of the earths orbit?
Which orbit would that be? The galactic orbit, the solar orbit, the local cluster orbit? From what viewpoint? Above or below the galactic plane, the planetary system plane, from the point of view of a different place in the local cluster than on earth itself?
If the plane of the Moons orbit were the same as the plane of the Earths orbit how often would there be a solar eclipse visible somewhere on Earth?
The moon's orbital plane is inclined about 5 degrees to the ecliptic. If the earth's and moon's orbital planes coincided, there would be a solar eclipse at every New Moon, and a lunar eclipse at every Full Moon. Pretty spectacular, but we would think that's just the way things work, and nobody would give it a second thought, like the miracle of the daily rising and setting of the sun.
What has changed the plane of the earths orbit?
the earthquake in Japan caused days to be a little shorter and a huge media blackout shows some sure indications towards it.
Why does a lunar or solar eclipse happen only twice per year?
For an eclipse, Sun, Earth and Moon must be aligned. Most of the time, the Moon doesn't pass exactly in front of the Earth (for a solar eclipse) or behind it (for a lunar eclipse), but passes more to the north or more to the south. This is because the Moon's orbit around the Earth is not exactly in the same plane as Earth's orbit around the Sun.
Solar eclipses do not happen EVERY month because of what reason?
Because the moon does not always pass exactly through the plane of the moon's orbit.
What would happen if the moons orbit were completely in the same plane as the earths orbit around the sun?
A lunar eclipse
Is the moons orbit in the same 3d plane as earths orbit?
No. For one thing, a plane is, by definition, 2-dimensional. The moon's orbit is tilted about 5 degrees relative to Earth's orbit.
What is the plane of the earths orbit?
FLAT
Is the earths axis rotation almost parallel to the plane of its orbit?
No; it's about 23 degrees off the plane of its orbit.
What is the plane in space containing earths orbit called?
Ecliptic.
How is the moons orbit positioned relative to the eclptic?
The Moon's orbit is inclined by just over 5 degrees to ecliptic plane.
Why are't all eclipse total eclipse?
The Earth orbits the Sun. The plane of the Earth's orbit is called the "ecliptic". The Moon has its own orbit around the Earth, and its own orbital plane. If the plane of the Moon's orbit was the same as the plane of the Earth's orbit, then there WOULD be solar eclipses at every new moon, and lunar eclipses at every full moon. But the plane of the Moon's orbit is NOT the same as the plane of the Earth's orbit - and really, why would they be? The Moon's orbital plane is inclined by about 5 degrees from the ecliptic. Therefore, eclipses only happen at full and new moons about every six months, when the Moon happens to be crossing the ecliptic.
Is the direction of the earths orbit?
Which orbit would that be? The galactic orbit, the solar orbit, the local cluster orbit? From what viewpoint? Above or below the galactic plane, the planetary system plane, from the point of view of a different place in the local cluster than on earth itself?
Is Earths orbit with sun is perfectly in horizontal plane ie with the centre of sun?
One of the results of the way gravity works is that a small body in an orbit around a large body moves in a plane. So every point in the earth's orbit around the sun is in the same plane. If you want to be perfectly technical ... the center of mass of the earth/moon system orbits the center of mass of the (sun + all the planets + all their moons) system. But the differences are so small that you can legitimately picture it as if the center of the earth orbits the center of the sun. The plane of the earth's orbit is what we call the "Ecliptic Plane". The orbits of the other planets are in close to the same plane but not exactly.
If the earth had 2 moons what funny things would happen. please i have a project man dou want me to fail?
The axis of rotation may be altered depending on its plane of orbit The tides would also be radically different.
What is the the degree of the earths inclination?
The Earth's tilt, or inclination, or obliquity is about 23.44 degrees from the plane of its orbit around the Sun.
What are 3 distinctive characteristics of orbit of planet and moon in the solar system?
1). They orbit in the same around the sun, and as the sun. 2). Orbits of planets and their larger moons are in just about the same plane. 3). Almost all planets and moons rotate on their axes in the same direction as the planets orbit the sun.
