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¿What if the moon did not exist? Since time immemorial it has been one of the great mysteries of science, but thanks to technological advances, fascinating things have been discovered. The moon is the only known natural satellite of the Earth and of vital importance for animal and plant life, as well as responsible for the balance of different ecosystems with the environment.
The moon is one of the celestial bodies most admired by humanity for being of vital importance and proximity to the Earth and, together with the stars, it is the one that illuminates the sky when the sun goes down and gets dark. It has not been proven whether human life would not exist on Earth without the presence of the moon, but it is clear that nothing would be the same. The gravitational attraction of the moon is fundamental, since it produces a deformation on our planet creating marine currents necessary for fish and their food. Are you interested in knowing more about the importance of the moon on Earth? If so, then in Green Ecologist we tell you the details.
Importance of the moon for the Earth
The moon is gradually moving away from the Earth about 3.8 centimeters per year.The consequences of this phenomenon could be devastating in a few centuries as the moon takes care of keep our planet's climate stable. The moment the moon is too far away and does not have gravitational impact on the Earth, this would bring devastating climatic consequences with the progressive destruction of our planet.
Without the effect of the moon on our lands, the temporal cycles would become chaotic, the Earth would make one turn every 8 hours instead of every 24 hours, so that a year as we conceive it would be made up of 1,095 days and this would take the reduce life expectancy to 25 years.
On the other hand, the winds would be more hurricane than ever, with much more power and violence than we know today. At the same time, the atmosphere would have a lot more oxygen and the planet's magnetic field would be three times stronger than the 80% of animal species would become extinct.
If you want to know more, we recommend watching the BBC documentary "Do We Really Need the Moon?" (Do we really need the moon?) Where scientist Maggie Aderin-Pocock explores and analyzes the factors that could lead to disaster should the moon disappear.
Influence of the moon on Earth
As we have been explaining, the Moon influences different phenomena on Earth. One of the aspects in which the Moon most influences the tides, the rise and fall of the sea level every 12 hours. These tides are produced because of the pull that the moon's gravity causes on the Earth. Since gravity increases as the distance from objects shortens, when the moon is closer to the Earth, it is when the water level rises, while when it moves away they lower its level again. That is, when the moon is above an ocean, it increases its level, while when it is on the opposite side of the Earth, it lowers. Although they are less intense than those of the Moon, other stars such as the Sun also cause tides in our waters.
In another aspect in which we observe the influence of the Moon on the Earth is in eclipses, when the Moon is located between the Earth and the Sun and prevents us from seeing it directly.
Is there influence of the moon on people?
A large number of urban legends circulate that speak about the influence that the moon has on people. Disregarding the most outlandish ones, like the werewolf mythology, there are still a good number of them that are taken for granted without any scientific evidence to back them up.
The Moon is a star that fascinates us, full of mysteries and speculations and, as we have seen throughout the article, its influence on the planet and the way we live is enormous. However, sometimes we go overboard by attributing influences that it does not have.
A widespread urban legend is that the moon affects our emotions, to our stability or even to the sleep phases, which can lead to insomnia. The reality is that all scientific studies that have been done deny it, so we can say that they have no influence on our sleep patterns or our emotions.
If you want to read more articles similar to The importance of the Moon on EarthWe recommend that you enter our Nature Curiosities category.
