Shooting stars are not visible on the moon.
When rocks and dust floating around in space fall to the Earth, they burn up due to the friction created from rubbing against the atmosphere. These are called meteors. Sometimes, they do not burn up completely and what is left falls to the surface. These are called meteorites.
Because the moon has no atmosphere, shooting stars fall directly onto the lunar surface without burning. This is how the many craters on the moon have been formed. The Earth’s atmosphere helps protect us from such meteorites.
Newly created crater on the moon
These photos were taken by NASA’s satellite orbiting the moon. In the right photo, you can see a new crater formed. A small rock floating around in space crashed into the lunar surface at a speed of 90,000 km/h and created an 18-meter-wide crater. Craters continue to be formed on the moon.
|