Surveyor 7 observes levitating dust, a phenomenon named Lunar horizon glow can be seenThe thin lunar atmosphere is visible on the Moon's surface at sunrise and sunset with the lunar horizon glow[1] and lunar twilight rays, like Earth's crepuscular rays. This Apollo 17 sketch depicts the glow and rays[2] among the general zodiacal light[3][4].
The atmosphere of the Moon is a very sparse layer of gases surrounding the Moon. For most practical purposes, the Moon is considered to be surrounded by vacuum. The elevated presence of atomic and molecular particles in its vicinity compared to interplanetary medium, referred to as "lunar atmosphere" for scientific objectives, is negligible in comparison with the gaseous envelopes surrounding Earth and most planets of the Solar System. The pressure of this small mass is around 3×10−15 atm (0.3 nPa), varying throughout the day, and in total mass less than 10 metric tonnes.[5][6] Otherwise, the Moon is considered not to have an atmosphere because it cannot absorb measurable quantities of radiation, does not appear layered or self-circulating, and requires constant replenishment due to the high rate at which its gases are lost into space.
Roger Joseph Boscovich was the first modern astronomer to argue for the lack of atmosphere around the Moon in his De lunae atmosphaera (1753).
^"Lunar horizon glow from Surveyor 7". The Planetary Society. May 6, 2016. Retrieved Aug 8, 2022.
^"NASA Mission To Study Mysterious Lunar Twilight Rays". Science Mission Directorate. Sep 3, 2013. Retrieved Aug 8, 2022.
^Colwell, Joshua E.; Robertson, Scott R.; Horányi, Mihály; Wang, Xu; Poppe, Andrew; Wheeler, Patrick (2009-01-01). "Lunar Dust Levitation - Journal of Aerospace Engineering - Vol 22, No 1". Journal of Aerospace Engineering. 22 (1): 2–9. doi:10.1061/(ASCE)0893-1321(2009)22:1(2). Retrieved 2022-08-08.
^Deborah Byrd (Apr 24, 2014). "The zodiacal light, seen from the moon". EarthSky. Retrieved Aug 8, 2022.
^Williams, David R. "Moon Fact Sheet". NASA. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
^Globus, Ruth (1977). "Chapter 5, Appendix J: Impact Upon Lunar Atmosphere". In Johnson, Richard D.; Holbrow, Charles (eds.). Space Settlements: A Design Study. NASA. NASA SP-413. Archived from the original on 2010-05-31. Retrieved 2016-11-15.
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