What Happens When the Moon Is Close to Earth, at a Distance of

This updated guide examines What Happens When the Moon Is Close to Earth, at a Distance of and organizes the essential facts, background, and practical takeaways in clear American English.

The answer is that if the Moon is just 420km from us like the ISS, the only natural satellite of the Earth will take up most of the sky and it only takes 90 minutes to orbit our planet.

Today, the Moon is about 380,000 km from Earth. If the Moon is just 420km from us like the ISS, the only natural satellite of the Earth will spin much faster than the Earth and it will only take 90 minutes to orbit our planet, it will go across the sky. It was about 5 minutes. This will cause the Moon to rise in the West and set in the East. In stark contrast to the present, the Moon is rotating slower than Earth and rises in the East, diving in the West.

The ISS has a width of 109 meters and the Moon is much larger with a diameter of 2,159 km. Therefore, when the Moon is near, it will occupy almost the entire sky.

Astronomer Phil Plait said that by then the Moon would cover more than half of the sky. Unless the Moon obscures the Sun, the remaining time light from the Earth will partially cast on the Moon.

In fact, if the Moon was really at such a close distance to Earth, the object would collapse due to gravity and could cause disaster for the Earth.

In detail, please see the extremely impressive simulation video of an amateur astronomer below.