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Measuring The Distance From Earth To Moon

Posted by timothy on from the technical-challenges dept.

lewiz writes: "Tom Murphy at UW is attempting to measure the distance between the Earth and The Moon to the nearest millimetre according to this BBC News article. 'His tape measure will be a giant telescope at Apache Point in New Mexico. Retroreflectors left on the surface of the Moon by various space missions, including the Apollo 11 lunar landing, will also come in handy.'"

3 of 284 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Am I reading this right? by Gaccm · · Score: 3, Informative

    Force = Weight.

    the formula for Force is: F=ma, replace a with the acceleration caused by gravity and you got weight.

    --

    Only dead fish swim with the stream...
  2. Re:Oddly Enough... by p3d0 · · Score: 5, Informative

    Bzzztt. The speed that the moon receeds wasn't measured directly, especially by doppler shift of all things. It was calculated from the kinetic energy gained by the moon from the Earth from tidal forces.

    --
    Patrick Doyle
    I mod down every jackass who puts his moderation policy in his sig. Oh, wait a sec....
  3. Mooting points. by blair1q · · Score: 5, Informative

    - The moon's orbit about the Earth is a 100-page equation, not a constant.

    - The Earth's rotation is not circular (it "sloshes").

    - The Earth's shape is not constant.

    - The Earth's mass is not constant, so the general relativistic field in which the moon orbits is not constant.

    - Okay, so we know where that telescope is relative to the moon. Now where is it relative to my house? To Washington? To Wendy's?

    - Isn't this just an attempt by the Bush White House to wag the dog to distract attention from the fistfight the President and Vice President had during the game Sunday?

    --Blair