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The earth has one single moon, and its name is "Luna", but most people

refer to it simply as "the moon".

Notice that if there were more than one, it wouldn't be possible to speak of

"the moon" at all, because someone would always ask "Which one ?"

The official International Astronomical Union name for the Earth's moon is (in English) "the Moon". In other languages it's called "la Lune," "der Mond," or something that translates back into English as "the Moon."

Since scientific terminology uses a lot of Latin and Greek roots, you'll see terms resembling the words "Luna" or "Selene" because those are the Latin and Greek forms respectively for the goddess of the Moon in their mythology.

Examples: lunar orbit, selenography (just like geography, except on the Moon).

You may have heard some nonsense about "Earth's second moon" being 3753 Cruithne. It is not a moon at all; it's more like an asteroid. However, it has approximately the same orbital period as Earth does.

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14y ago

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